The Reign of Darkness
by HoshiHikari
Summary: Voldemort had a son that he never knew about, until recently. Only problem is, his son is the cause of his downfall, Harry Potter. How will he react? How will Harry react when he finds out? On top of it all Dumbledore had been keeping secrets from Harry.
1. Chapter 1

**The Reign of Darkness**

**Written by:** HoshiHikari

**Disclaimer**: I do not own Harry Potter. All characters belong to J.K. Rowling.

**Summary:** Takes place after the OOTP. Voldemort had a son that he never knew about, until recently. Only problem is, his son is the cause of his downfall, Harry Potter. How will he react? How will Harry react when he finds out? On top of it all Dumbledore had been keeping secrets from Harry.

**Author Notes:** This story was first written directly after book 5 came out. I have revised and reposted it as a tribute to the Order of the Phoenix movie which will be coming out in about a month. I have tried to remain loyal to the original story line, but somethings will have changed, so I advice my readers to reread this for that purpose or just to familiarize yourself with the story again. As when this first came out, there was an overwhelming majority who hoped for a sequel, and depending on how well this second time around goes, I will consider doing one. In fact I already have an idea which includes a prequel "The VPMWPV" and a possible sequel. If I continue on with this, then this trilogy will be known as "Eternal Darkness trilogy". However that is merely a tentative plan, and so instead of focusing on that, I shall focus on my current task which is to revise this story. Do note that this fic will have spoilers form books 1-6. Oh yes, before I begin, this fic does not follow the timeline of the original book and so some events that may have occurred in Rowling's work either happened earlier or later (such as Voldemort being the same age as James Potter) then when it should have occurred.

**Please Read & Review!!**

**Chapter 1: Lord Voldemort's son: Thomas J. R. Riddle, a.k.a. Harry James Potter**

_Harry was standing in a dark corridor. Small bits of light could be seen in the room next store. Voices could be heard from the inside. Holding his breath, he tiptoed to the open door. He peeked in and let out a gasp at what he saw._

_There, sitting on a large chair was a man with blood-red, snake like eyes. In front of him, curled up in a coil, was a gigantic serpent._

_/Nagini, it is time/__ the man hissed softly._

_/Time? For what master?/ __The large serpent hissed back._

_/Time for my son, and my heir to return to me. I want you to retrieve him./ _

_/Why not ask your Death Eaters?/ _

_/Because Nagini, I do not want a commotion to occur./_

_/Ah, yes, he does not know./_

_/Nor, did I until a month ago./ __The man's voice trailed off. /__The point is Nagini, I do not want Dumbledore interfering, especially since he knew all along that I had a son, not to mention he's been feeding my son lies. And my boy's stupid enough to believe him./ _

_/Master, if he does not know then how will I be able to retrieve him? He's bound to retaliate./_

_/Yes, that is bound to happen. Just get him to me unharmed and alive, otherwise…/ __Nagini gave a shudder._

_/Yes master, I shall bring him to you./ __Nagini slithered out of the room._

_Harry, who had been watching wide-eyed from the doorway, turned to run, but the snake slither up to his dream-self, only stopping when she was before him. _

_/Young master, I shall come for you./_

_To Harry's surprise, Nagini lowered her head and bowed to him, before slithering away. Then Voldemort came out and stood face to face with Harry's transparent image._

_"After 16 long years, I have found you at last my son." He touched Harry's forehead, brushing away the hair, as he touched the scar. Harry panicked. _

_"We will soon meet again Potter. Soon I shall be reunited with my son, with you."_

Harry woke up with a start. Sweat covered his thin body. He sat up on his bed and looked around, relieved that he was safe in his room at Number 4, Privet Drive. He stood up, padded across the room, and looked at his reflection, surprised at how little he had changed over the past month.

Looking back was a 16-year-old boy, his black hair as untidy as always. His emerald green eyes stared back from behind his glasses. The famous lighting-bolt scar ran down his forehead.

It had been a month since Sirius had died in the Department of Mysteries. Living with the Dursleys had improved a whole lot, which Harry supposed was because they were afraid of the threats that Moody, Tonks, the Weasleys and Lupin had thrown out at them.

He had written to the Order, thanking them for the "chat" with the Dursleys, but they never wrote back. In fact, the last month had been like the previously year, no news from the wizardry world. Once again he had lost complete contact with the other world, the world that he truly belonged to.

_Man, I hate this. I hate Dumbledore. Why do I have to be the one left out from all the important stuff? Why do they do that to me? Why am I always the last to be informed at everything?_ _Wait, that's not right._

Voldemort had been sending him dreams, no not dreams, for Harry knew it was real. Still, though he was not sure what it was, knew that something was wrong. All he knew was that Voldemort had been communicating with him through these dreams—his only link to the other world—and he supposed he was thankful to Voldemort for them.

_Voldemort, what is it? What is it that you're trying to tell me? Where is it that you're trying to lead me? _

The answer came quickly enough.

_You want me dead, is that it? Still, I have some unanswered questions. Who is your son? Why do you wish to tell me about him? What good would that do?_

Harry sighed. He knew something significant had happened and he wanted to turn to somebody, anybody, for comfort.

_Sirius. Sirius, I miss you so much. I need you now. Sirius, so much has happened, so many unanswered questions. I'm so lonely._

_Perhaps he should seek out Voldemort and have everything over with? No, what am I thinking, walking straight into death…_

Harry sighed. He was lonely and completely lost.

Harry woke to the banging on his door. He groaned, hating to have to wake up when he had just fallen asleep.

"Get up now!" Aunt Petunia yelled.

"All right, I'm up, I'm up." He sat up with sleepy eyes. Letting out a yawn, he put on his glasses to start another dull day. Or at least…it was a dull day until around 3:00 in the afternoon, when a loud scream broke out.

Harry leapt up at Dudley's horrifying scream. He pocketed his wand and ran towards his cousin. He stopped abruptly, surprised at the scene in front of him.

Uncle Vernon was propped on the floor panting. Aunt Petunia and Arabella Doreen Figg, the squib who lived in his neighborhood, were struggling to pull a massive snake off Dudley. A snake that Harry recognized all too well.

/Nagini, get off of him./ Harry hissed. Everyone looked up at Harry who held out his wand.

"About time you got here boy!" Vernon yelled, still panting.

"Potter, leave now!" Mrs. Figg called out. Harry ignored her and focused on Nagini.

/Nagini! It's me that you want, let him go…/

To Harry's surprised, Nagini released Dudley.

/Yes, young master... as you wish./ The snake faced Harry, it's head lowered.

/Voldemort's sent you for me, he wants me…/

/Yes./ The snake interrupted.

/No, you won't be taking me alive…/

/I will, for it is in your best interest. Besides, Master knows, knows that you have been uninformed once again. He can provide you with answers to all of your questions, even the one's that Dumbledore has kept from you, young master…/

_Hmm, He knows. So Voldemort knows._ Harry thought.

/Besides, those dreams you have, it is the truth./

/Lies! He lied to me. Sirius Black is dead because of the dreams! I don't want anything to do with him!/

/Master, regrets Black's death./

/Whatever/

/It's true. If you do not believe me, then come. All master wants now is his son./

/Yes, about his son…who is he?/

Nagini hesitated before answering.

/His name is Thomas J. R. Riddle/

Harry nodded. That name sounded awfully familiar for some reason. He felt that whoever it was, had a deep connection with him somehow.

/Thomas J. R. Riddle, the son and heir to Tom Marvolo Riddle./ Harry whispered, an evil grin spread across his face. However the grin soon faded.

/Then why does Voldemort want me, if all he searches for is Thomas? Oh yes, that's right I'm his mortal enemy./

This time it was Nagini who smiled, evilly.

/Come with me and find out. Find out the answers to all your questions. Find out the darkest secrets that Dumbledore has been keeping from you…/

/Dumbledore doesn't keep anything from me/ Harry retorted nervously.

/Then why else have you been left clueless during this summer as like the one before?/

/Because…because.../ Harry couldn't answer.

_Why did Dumbledore break contact with me? Ron, Hermione, Lupn, Tonks and Mad-Eye did the same as well. Why didn't they send even a tiny note? Why am I once again here in the Muggle world, with no contact to the Wizardry world?_

/You see, young master, there are many unanswered questions./ Nagini paused. /Besides,/ Nagini turned to face the Muggles and Squib. /Better in enemy hands, then living with them…/

Harry nodded, agreeing with Nagini for once. He walked over to Nagini.

"Harry, wait, where are you going?" Mrs. Figg asked.

He turned to face her.

/It is to your disadvantage if word leaks out about your visit to my Master./ Nagini whispered. /We don't want anyone to get the wrong impression…/

/Yeah, you're right, I don't want Dumbledore to know about this yet./

With a swift movement Harry raised his wand toward the Dursleys and Mrs. Figg, hissing a soft /Avada Kedavra./ A jet of green light flashed, before all four laid dead on the floor. Harry had a smile across his face.

/Hmm…young master will indeed turn into the darkest and most feared wizard of them all./ Nagini hissed approvingly.

/Thank you for the compliment Nagini./ Harry spoke without realizing it. Giving a sigh, he turned towards Nagini. /Let's go./

Nagini nodded.

/Grab hold of the portkey./ The snake instructed. Harry did so. Instantly he felt his legs lift off the ground. He shut his eyes, as he disappeared.

Harry landed with a thud. Inhaling a deep breath, he opened his eyes. He was in a huge room, decorated with green banners. On many of them was a snake.

Looking around, he saw that a man with blood-red, snake-like eyes was staring intently at him, sitting on a throne-like chair.

"Voldemort..." Harry mumbled. The man's lip curled up into a smile.

"Welcome home, Harry James Potter. Or shall I say Thomas J. R. Riddle, my son?"

* * *

Once again, if you haven't read the author note, this story is a repost. I have taken down the orginal for edit and is reposting them again. Hopefully you'll all enjoy this story as much as I do. It's still my number 1 accomplishment in the world of fanfiction. Remember to give your suporrt by sending a REVIEW! 


	2. The Truth

**Chapter 2 The Truth**

Harry stumbled back a couple of steps.

"Wh—What?"

Voldemort waved his hand and conjured up a chair and a plate of cookies.

"Please Thomas. Sit down and have a cookie." The Dark Lord's voice was soft, showing no sign of hatred of any sort. Instead it was filled with love. Harry just stared at him, even more clueless then before.

"You can do wandless magic?" Harry blurted out.

"Yes. Wandless magic is merely a derived form of Non-verbal spells, which are taught at Hogwarts to six and seven year students. The major difference is that wandless magic requires more strength and energy as not only is the spell not spoken, but also done without a wand. Only those who are powerful may attain such a skill. You are one of them. "

"No, I can't do…" Harry began to object.

"Yes, you can. You've done magic before without your wand when situations got tough, or when you wanted something done. The only difference is that was done out of desperation. However, with proper instruction, you'll be able to achieve this freely."

Harry thought back to a time years before he attended Hogwarts and all the times when things unexpectedly happened.

"Okay, so I can do a little…." Harry said nervously. He wasn't sure where this conversation was going and frankly he was somewhat spooked by being around a Voldemort that wasn't flinging curses at him.

"I know what you are thinking. Please relax. Take a cookie, it isn't poisoned."

Harry eyed the cookies suspiciously before finally taking one, figuring that if Voldemort wanted to murder him it wouldn't be by poison.

"Good son, now take a seat. I have much to speak to you about."

"Like what? More lies?" Harry retorted.

"No, all I am offering to you is the truth. Besides, why would I lie?"

"How should I know?"

"Then listen to me. Besides, if they are lies, isn't it better than knowing nothing at all?"

The boy slowly nodded.

_I suppose so._ Harry thought. _Dumbledore and the others have offered me nothing so far. Always saying 'when you're older' and 'you won't understand' and shit like that. I mean, I've faced death and danger a billion times, why should I be the one who doesn't know anything until it is absolutely necessary? _

With that thought in mind, he slumped onto the chair and prepared to listen to the truth, or more lies, either way he was willing to give it a shot.

"Now let me start in the very beginning, then you will understand. Decide afterwards. I will let you choose." Harry only nodded. The Dark Lord stared at Harry intently.

"It all began during my third year at Hogwarts." Voldemort paused. "Have you ever wondered why Lily never went out with James before the seventh year?"

"How do you know that?"

"Because since our third year Lily was going out with me."

"What?" Harry asked shocked.

"Yes, Lily was my girl. That is why she didn't go out with James."

"Liar, Mom wouldn't go out with you!"

"Well she did, and not only that, we made love countless times, at least when I was still Tom."

"Whatever. If that is true why did you break up? Because she found out that you were using her?"

"No. I told her of my ambitions, my greatest desires, everything, yet she refused me and my proposal, instead she went out with James."

Harry snorted, as if he was going to believe that.

"Later on, still, I think Lily was still attracted to me because even after Hogwarts, even after they married, we still saw each other. I even attended their wedding, though I don't think anybody knew besides Lily. It was then that she pulled me aside afterwards, and told me that she was pregnant. I congratulated her. However she told me that I was the father, because she and James did not make love yet."

Harry gulped, finishing the last piece of cookie. Voldemort swished his hand and another plateful appeared. Harry took a cookie.

"She told me to name you, and that James would raise you as his son, since he did not know, nor did anyone else but Dumbledore."

"Dumbledore knows? How did that happen?"

"Yes, he does. As for how, I do not know. Perhaps Lily confided in him, or he knew just because he's Dumbledore. Dumbledore knows everything. But the point I'm making is I'm sure if he knew, I knew now, he would throw a threat at me. I'm sure he would threaten to do horrible things to you, to my son if I didn't bend to his will. So, before I could let that happen, I had to get you, I had make sure you knew the truth."

"Wait, I'm confused. Why wouldn't Dumbledore know that you know? I mean if what you are saying is correct, then mom told you."

"It's complicated. I will try to explain it, but right now let me continue. I'm sure it'll explain itself out."

Harry merely nodded.

"The night you became famous, was the night Wormtail, having switched with Black as the Potter's secret keeper, told me of their hideout. With that information, I attacked."

"But why? I've very confused now. I thought you loved my mom. Why would you attack her?"

"I heard the prophecy, half of the prophecy. I was reckless, I attacked on false information." Voldemort paused.

"The prophecy, of course." Harry mused. "But that still doesn't explain…"

"Lily left me for Potter." Voldemort growled out. "You were prophesied to kill me." He continued. "I wasn't thinking straight. How could I be? One of the people that I had loved and treasured the most turned against me, the other was doomed to destroy me. I had nothing left but power and the title of being the Dark Lord. I wasn't going to give that away, I was desperate to keep hold of all that I had left Do you understand Harry? Can you understand that?"

Harry was going to respond, but Voldemort did not let give him the chance.

"As you probably know, James tried to defend you and Lily. I hated him and so killed him without haste. Lily pleaded for your life. She kept reminding me of our most intimate, most pleasurable times together. I, being furious with her, killed her too. Then I turned my wand on you and preformed the curse that failed."

Harry unconsciously rubbed his lighting bolt scar.

"Much more then the spell rebounding on me occurred that night."

"Yes, you transferred power to me."

"That was done a long time ago, when Lily and I mated."

"Oh, then what?"

"I believe a strong memory charm was involved as well. From the time the spell rebounded onto me, until a month ago, I did not know you were my son. The whole ordeal was wiped away from my memories."

Harry looked stunned.

"The only reason I believe it has unlocked is because you will be turning 16. I know many spells of that nature which locks a memory away and then reopens it in the future. I believe Lily used one of these spells. Lily knew that if I knew the truth, I would come after you. You're mother loved you dearly and because of who I am, what I do, she tried to shield and protect you from it. At 16, you're old enough to make decisions for yourself and that is why Lily must have chosen now to reveal the secret. She knew I would approach you and whichever side you end up choosing, she knew it would change your life forever."

Voldemort stopped here to let the information sink in. In the meantime, he too ate a cookie.

"However, Harry, you didn't grow up a normal life, away from this madness that you might associate with the wizardry world, with me in particular. Lily tried to protect you, but in doing so, caused even more destruction. I swear Harry, if I had known, your childhood would have been very different."

"Right. We wouldn't be discussing this now and I probably would have ended up like you. I would have…"

"Been the heir to the Dark Throne." Voldemort whispered. "The offer still stands." He added.

Harry's eyes flashed opened, becoming even wider then before.

"Our lives are intertwined Harry, whether you like it or not. Lily tried to keep me away from you, but as you know, that did not work. In fact, this turned you into the Boy-Who-Lived, which in turn turned father and son into mortal enemies." Voldemort paused. "Say if Lily hadn't done that, you would have been my son, the Dark Heir. Face it Harry, either way our lives are intertwined, nothing will ever change that."

"I don't want to be the Dark Heir. I dislike you; I dislike everything you do, everything you stand for. I don't want to become what I've been fighting against." Harry whispered. "But at the same time, I do not want to be the Boy-Who-Lived. I dislike Dumbledore and the Order just as much."

"You will be given the time to decide." Voldemort said smoothly. "But I hope you understand where I am coming from."

"I do. I have no problem understanding, but accepting. The prophecy…"

"Again, I stress that it is false. All Dumbledore wants is to destroy us both. He cannot do that since we are both stronger then him. The line neither can live while the other survives should have been neither can survive without the other. Can't you see that Harry, don't you understand?"

"Sirius died because of it." Harry murmured. "Sirius died to protect me from something that wasn't even true."

"I'm sorry about your loss Harry. But if it helps, you weren't the only one who lost you're Godfather. I did not mean for it to happen. I liked him. I didn't like James, but I liked Sirius. I suppose I should say I was thankful that he was there to take care of you when I wasn't."

Again there was silence.

"I won't forgive him for that. I won't ever forgive Dumbledore for doing that." Harry whispered. "Sirius had been the closes thing I had to a father."

"I am your father." Voldemort interrupted. "You are my son Thomas, and that is not going to change Harry."

Voldemort waved his hand again and Harry's appearance changed dramatically. He could not see; everything was a blur.

"Take of your glasses."

Harry did so, and everything became clear. A mirror swayed in front of him and Harry gasped. His hair was no longer untidy. It was shoulder length. His eyes were blood red, like Voldemort's. The resemblance to young Tom Riddle was apparent.

On his neck he was now wearing a chain with a locket. The locket had a picture of a snake and a lion, intertwined on the front. Flipping it over, on the back was a phoenix.

"This locket is for you. Consider it your sixtieth birthday present from your father."

Harry tore his gaze from the locket and onto Voldemort. Voldemort took this opportunity and waived his hand in the air. The words Harry James Potter shone down on them.

"This is who you are or who you think." He waved his hand. The letters rearranged itself to form the name Thomas Jerry Reapt.

"Remember Thomas, all I speak of is the truth. Now you must choose your path. You say you understand, but do you accept? Normally I'll give you time to think and reflect, however this cannot wait. Your decision will ultimately sway the progression of the war. Will you stay with me, or return to Dumbledore with all memory of this meeting gone. May I add, if you choose the life as a Potter, then I will destroy you the next time we meet."

Harry fumbled with the locket. He closed his eyes as he thought deeply of the past, of Voldemort's words and the future that he wanted. At last he opened his eyes.

"I'll stay father," he whispered.


	3. TJRR's Mark

**Author Notes: **As some of you pointed out, Voldemort did not go to school with the Mauarader's, in fact he might have been in school during WWII. This is a fact that I do know. However, this is fanfiction and because this is fanfiction, the story and perhaps the storyline will be different from the orginal. If I need to say it just to clarify somethings up, then I will say it---this is AU.

**Chapter 3 TJRR's Mark**

July had passed quickly and August had begun. Every day Voldemort would patiently train Thomas in the Dark Arts and was pleased that Thomas learned quickly. Now he could do magic without his wand, had successfully became an Animagus, and could produce two types of Patronus.

His Parseltongue had improved as well. He could now speak it without having a snake nearby. Day in and day out, Thomas and Nagini would talk with each other, as the snake was his only other company. Once in a while, Thomas caught a glimpse of Wormtail and Bellatrix, but Voldemort had told him not to announce himself yet.

Night had fallen. Father and son were having one of their nightly talks in Voldemort's room.

"Thomas"

"Yeah father?"

"As my son, I think you have a reputation to keep up."

"I know."

"As you know I was the most feared…."

"You still are the Dark Lord and the most feared wizard in the world." Thomas paused. Voldemort smiled evilly. "And you have the Death Eaters and The Dark Mark."

"Yes, but thanks to you my Death Eaters are in Azkaban." He paused. "It just proves how strong you are."

"No, this proves how strong and powerful you are father, and how weak some of your subordinates are."

"That is nothing. I know that you will exceed both me and Dumbledore when you go on to take me place."

Thomas smiled shyly.

"You will become the most powerful and feared Dark Lord ever, even more so than me. I will guide you."

"Hmm…" Thomas wondered when that would be. He couldn't wait to squash Dumbledore. Voldemort smiled darkly.

"And yes, of course we shall kill Dumbledore, the Order and everyone else who stands in our path."

"You saw right through me…"

Voldemort nodded.

"Of course, but we are far from that. You still need to train and recruit others as your own. You need powerful servants, as the Death Eaters are mine."

"But being your son, the Death Eaters still obey me right?"

"Yes…about that." He took Thomas's left hand. "I will make a mark for you. This will be your own mark. The Dark Mark is mine and it represents me, so you shall have your own."

"Are you going to burn it onto my skin. Is the Dark Mark on your left forearm father?"

Voldemort smiled mildly.

"So you know where the Dark Mark is located on my Death Eaters." He paused, taking out a Galleon.

"I've got plenty of money." Thomas blurted out.

"No, son, this is where my Dark Mark is located at." Thomas smiled thinking back to the DA meetings he had organized. Then he switched back to being Harry. Voldemort looked at him mildly surprised. Harry took out his DA Galleon and handed it to Voldemort.

"It's mine, kind of like the Dark Mark. It's for the DA. Dumbledore's Army."

"Dumbledore's got an army?"

"No not really, it was Hermione's idea for me to teach Defense Against The Dark Arts. I'm the leader. I hold meetings with them and tell them with this coin."

"I see, so the Mudblood stole my idea." Voldemort stated.

"Does this bother you father?"

"No, actually this is better. It would be easier to take over Hogwarts, to gather a group of people and take them as prisoners."

"I see."

Voldemort turned Harry's Galleon onto it's back, where it was blank.

"I'll put your mark on the back." Harry nodded, switching back into Thomas. Voldemort snapped his finger and then handed the Galleon back to Thomas. Thomas studied it. Engraved on the center was the letters TJRR. On the background was the skull. Two uncoiled snakes were on either side of the letters T and R.

"Why is there an extra r? I thought you named me Thomas with Jerry Reapt as my middle name?"

"Riddle" was the only explanation that the Dark Lord gave.

"Now touch it." Voldemort said and Thomas obeyed.

Severus Snape awoke with a start. Both his right and left forearm was aching. Pulling up his sleeves, he stared down at the two marks on his arm. The Dark Mark on his left forearm, and a new mark on his right. He studied the one on his right.

"What is this? Why another mark? Who does it belong to? Does it work the same way as the Dark Mark? Master, tell me what this means!"

In Azkaban Lucius Malfoy felt as if his skin tore open. Looking down on his right forearm, he found a new mark.

"Hmm…TJRR, who or what is that?" He nudged Avery. "Check your right forearm." Avery did so. He let out a surprised grunt.

"What does it mean?"

"I do not know Avery. I really do not know."

"Do you think the others have it too?"

"Probably."

"There now Thomas, all the Death Eaters have it. Just touch it and the Death Eaters will appear instantly."

Thomas smiled evilly. Then a thought crosses his mind.

_Snape, what about Snape? Does father know about him? That he is actually an insider for Dumbledore? _

Voldemort stared at him. "What about Snape?" He asked softly, locking his eyes onto Thomas's.

"Is he loyal?"

"Why?"

"Well, I think I'll be returning to Hogwarts afterwards right? I would like to finish my studies."

"Of course." Voldemort replied, though he knew this wasn't the real reason Thomas wanted to know.

"Then I'll be meeting him there, you know he teaches Potions, and I was wondering if I could turn to him. If he is trustworthy enough…"

"Yes, Severus is one of the most loyal…" He replied slowly, but there was doubt in his voice.

_I suppose I'll have to figure that out myself. Snape whose side are you on anyway?_

Voldemort was still staring intently at him, trying to read his mind.

"Is something else on your mind son?" Thomas shook his head slightly. Of course, Voldemort knew otherwise, but did not pressure him to speak. Instead he changed the subject.

"Now about the other Death Eaters."

Thomas kept his head low.

"Which ones?"

The Dark Lord smiled.

"The ones in Azkaban."

"Malfoy…."

The man nodded.

"And the others. They aren't much help are they, I mean, after I got them locked up?" Thomas sounded regretful, having lost a handful of future servants.

"Yes, but it's not the end of the world is it, having lost only a handful of them?"

"Do you blame me fa—father?"

Voldemort raised his hand seemingly wanting to wrap it around the boy's neck. Thomas twitched slightly as he did so. The man however seemed not to have noticed. The hand touched the boy's cheek. Still even after more then a month, being with his son, Voldemort did not give Thomas the fatherly affection a father would normally give to his son. Even now, the only person that had given him that feeling was Sirius.

"Now why would I blame you?"

"I thought you might, I mean, before I found out about you being my father, I was always able to feel your emotions, read your mind and all those other things, and whenever a Death Eater well upsets you, you know what happens…" his voiced trailed off. "And even now, I still can. I know our bond had even grown stronger."

"You are my son, and not a Death Eater. I won't let anything happen to you, nothing." Thomas nodded. Even though Voldemot did not give him the fatherly feeling, he still felt safe and secure around the older man. "Besides, all can be fixed."

"What do you mean?"

"There will be another break out, the third break out from Azkaban." He paused. "They were fools to blame the last one on Black. Black isn't even a Death Eater," Voldemort hesitated as he said that. "To have Black as a railing point…" The man seemed outraged at the idea.

"I know. How father?"

"You can go."

"Me?" He swallowed hard.

"Yes. You can gain loyalties and support, not to mention you can become the second to the Dark Lord, likewise The Dark Lord afterward. Besides we all know you are the most powerful wizard in the world, besides Dumbledore and I, so I have much to expect from you."

"Yes father."

"So you agree?"

"Yeah, I agree to break into Azkaban and then out of it." Thomas stood up, and turned around to leave.

"Thomas…" Voldemort spoke. "Be careful alright."


	4. Azkaban Break Out

**Chapter 4 Azkaban Break Out**

Screams echoed through the halls of Azkaban. A Basilisk and a gigantic snake slithered pass the numerous cells.

/Nagini, You didn't have to come…/

/Master sent me to come along. You know he is extremely worried about young master./

/Yes, I know that…./

The two snakes slithered past the screaming people. They stopped in front of the last cell.

/Hmm, They're in here./

/Shall I wait here young master?/

/If you wish Nagini…/

/Then no, I'll come too. You know they don't know you and I don't want there to be any trouble./

/Fine you can come and watch./

/Thank you young master./

Thomas took his human form once he was outside the cell.

Many people screamed.

"An Animagus!" Someone said behind them. "Do you recognize him? Who's that boy anyway?"

Thomas ignored the other people. He snapped his hand and the door to the Death Eaters cell opened.

"Oh my god, wandless magic too!"

Thomas entered the cell, with Nagini following close behind.

The Death Eaters stared silently at the newcomers, all knowing exactly whom Nagini belonged too. Then the faces turned to studied Thomas. Thomas watched back, taking in each face, glaring at them all. The group backed off, forming a semi circle around them. Nagini settled itself comfortably before Thomas, letting the young master pet him. No one spoke. The only noise came from outside the cell, where the other prisoners were yelling.

"Hmm….Malfoy, Crabbe, Goyle, Macnair, Nott, Avery, Rookwood and Dolohov…." Thomas spoke each of their names as their eyes met. None of them spoke.

"Who are you, and how do you know us?"

"The name is Riddle, Thomas Riddle." Thomas paused. "As for how I know you, we've all met before."

"We've met?" "

Yes, Malfoy." Thomas responded.

Nagini hissed at him, causing them to fall silent again.

"Father will explain later. Right now, we must leave." No one moved. "Unless of course you all want to stay?" Thomas turned to leave. "Come, Nagini, forget about them."

"Wait, Thomas,"

"What Macnair?"

"I don't know who you are, how you got here, but how do you think a kid like you would be able to get out of here alive, someone is bound to…." Before he could finish, his body was lifted into the air.

"Are you underestimating my abilities?" Thomas tightens his fist.

"No, no, no of course not, no…"

"Good," Thomas released him and he crashed onto the floor. His face bleed hard, without stopping. The others looked uneasy. "I've come on father's orders. He wishes all his Death Eaters back. I've come to get you. If you decide to stay, fine, be my guess."

A thought crossed Malfoy's mind.

"I apologize if any of us offended you, but please get us out of here. We'll be forever in your debt."

"Yes, yes…please…" Thomas turned back to face the group, a smile spread across his face.

"Alright, you all promised, don't ever disappoint me…."

They looked confused but nodded anyway.

"I'll be back. Nagini, watch over them a while."

The snake nodded and Thomas left the cell. He faced the rest of the prisoners.

"If any of your families want revenge, have them come and find me."

They roared with laughter. Thomas pointed his hand out at the group.

"Remember my name, Thomas Riddle, Lord Voldemort's son! AVADA KEDAVRA!" Green light filled everywhere. When it disappeared, everyone but the Death Eaters and Nagini died. Thomas returned to the group still laughing. They all looked uneasy.

"Well, shall we be off?" Thomas's voice was calm, as if nothing had happened.

"Umm yes, yes at once." Malfoy answered. They all nodded. Thomas then took out an ordinarily piece of parchment.

"A Portkey, I presume." Avery asked.

"Yes, but after I do something." He snapped his finger. Thomas's mark appeared above the Azkaban prisoner. "Ok come on." He paused. "Someone get Macnair."

Crabbe and Goyle did so. Thomas made sure he was still touching Nagini.

"Grab on to it." They all did so. At once the Portkey took effect and.the group of people disappeared from Azkaban.

* * *

Three days later, Voldomort called the Death Eaters. They were all hooded in their black cloaks, kneeling before their master. Thomas sat next to his father.

"You are all here because of good news."

"Good news?" one of the Death Eaters questioned.

"Yes," Voldemort gestured at Thomas. "As some of you know, this is Thomas. He is my son." Some glanced up at the boy. "I'm sure that you all have his mark. The one located on your right forearm."

They murmured a 'Yes'.

"It works the same as The Dark Mark."

They murmured another 'Yes'.

"Good, you are all dismissed. Malfoy and Snape stay."

Two hooded figure lingered behind, exchanging glances at one another.

"Thomas is going to return to Hogwarts."

"Return Master, I never knew he even attended." Snape asked softly.

"Ah, Severus. Of course you never knew, no one but Dumbledore knew. Thomas, I think it is time to show them your other self."

Thomas looked at his father, then at those two hooded figures.

_Would Snape tell Dumbledore. Is Snape to be trusted? Whose side is he really on?_

"It's alright, Go on Son…"

Thomas heaved a huge sigh before he willfully changed back into Harry. Both Snape and Malfoy let off a surprised gasped.

"Potter…"

"Yes, it is Harry James Potter, are you surprised?"

They both nodded.

"You are the only two who know. If anything happens to my son at Hogwarts, you're both dead."

"Yes, we understand Master."

"I want him well protected."

"Yes…yes master…."


	5. Back at Hogwarts

**Chapter 5 Back at Hogwarts**

The Hogwarts Express whistled loudly as it headed for Hogwarts. People chattered inside the compartments, all happy to return. At least, that was how most people felt.

"I can't believe it Lupin, you're going to return as the Defense Against the Dark Art teacher!" Ron smiled happily.

"Thanks Ron." Lupin said, looking around the empty compartment. Hermione and Ginny were talking quietly on the opposite side.

"Yeah, that's great isn't it? I mean I'm employed again."

Ron nodded. Just then the compartment door slid open and they all looked up. Ron had taken out his wand, expecting Malfoy, Crabbe, and Goyle. Instead, Cho Chang stood there, looking slightly disappointed at the group.

"Hi, Cho!" Hermione greeted her with a smile.

"Oh hello Ron, Ginny, Hermione and Professor."

"How's your summer?" Ginny added.

"Oh it was fine." Cho said, though she did not sound like she meant it.

"What's wrong Ms. Chang?" Lupin asked sensing the unhappiness.

"Oh, nothing Professor." She paused. "You guys haven't seen Harry, have you?"

"Umm no...actually we lost contact during the summer, no idea..." Ron began.

"So you lost contact with him too." They exchanged looks. "Oh well, I suppose I'll see you guys later. I got to find Harry," she mumbles before leaving the compartment.

"I thought they broke up." Ginny shook her head slightly.

"Me too." Hermione added. "I wonder what's going on between them."

"You mean what happened to Harry. I know something happened, just don't know what." Lupin said softly. They fell silent, all wondering why Harry would want to lose contact with the wizardry world.

* * *

"You missed the train." Voldemort spoke to his son.

"I know that. I don't want to meet the others right now, just want to slip in."

"I see, but you must return to Hogwarts, it is best for us all"

"Alright, then I'll go now." Thomas got up.

"As Potter..."

Thomas nodded, turning into Harry once more.

"How can I get there?"

"How did Black get in and out of Hogwarts without being detected?"

"Animagus..." Harry turned into his Animagus form.

"Go now and be careful."

The lion nodded, before leaving for Hogwarts.

* * *

The Hogwarts train arrived later that night.

"Well, I suppose I'll see you guys later." Lupin said as he headed inside. The others nodded.

"See you professor!"

As Lupin passed the Whomping Willow, he thought he saw the outline of a gigantic lion. He blinked, and looked again. The image had disappeared.

_Must have only dreamt it. There's nothing there..._

Lupin tried to convince himself, but somehow he felt that what he saw was real. It bothered him. Being a werewolf, he was sure it wasn't a normal lion.

* * *

He stood very still. Lupin had stopped and was looking straight at him.

_Lupin. What is he doing here? Has he come on Dumbledore's orders? Is he here to spy on me like the others?_

He saw Lupin blink. With that he turned himself invisible with the Disillusionment Charm. As quietly as possible he used his paw and unset the trap of the Whomping Willow. The tree stopped shaking, and he slipped through.

* * *

Lupin shook his head again before going up to the castle. After all he was a professor, and he needed to attend the feast.

* * *

Harry stayed inside the Whomping Willow for at least half an hour. Finally he left and headed back up to the castle, in his human form. There wasn't anyone in the hallways, they had all returned to their dormitories. He was halfway up the stairs when a voice called to him.

"Why, it's Potty Wee Potter!" Peeves yelled above him.

"Get out of my sight Peeves!"

"Still cranky?"

"Last warning, leave..."

Peeves stuck out his tongue. Harry raised his hand and clenched it into a fist. Peeves froze, his eyes widening. Harry unclenched his fist, watching as Peeves smashed into the wall before disappearing.

"Remember Peeves! Never mess with me!" Harry turned to leave.

"POTTER!" Both Snape and McGonagall came stalking toward him.

"What did you do? How did you do..." Snape began, but Harry coughed loudly.

"Peeves started it...Professors."

"I don't care what happened, 50 points from Gyffindor!" Harry was surprised that McGonagall was the one who took the points away.

"But..."

"Now, I don't think it is that serious..." A voice interrupted. They turned to see Lupin hurrying towards them.

"What do you mean Remus?" the deputy headmistress asked.

"Chasing Peeves off isn't against any law."

"You can't stick up for him..." Snape snapped.

"Yes, I can and I will, especially since—since Padfoot is gone. He needs someone!"

"You can't favor him..." Snape argued.

"What is going on here? Severus, Remus, Minvera I would have expected…" Dumbledore's voice spoke up. The three parted.

"Ah yes, should have expected you here Harry." He paused. "I'll take him from here."

They nodded. As Harry passed Snape, he saw Snape incline his head a little. The others did not seem to notice. Harry nodded at Snape, showing the man that he saw it.

Neither Harry nor Dumbledore spoke as they journeyed to the Headmaster's office.

"Harry, we need to speak about what happened this summer." Dumbledore said bluntly, avoiding the other's eyes as they sat down across from each other.

"Nothing, there is nothing you can say. You had plenty of time…" Harry began, also dropping his act, knowing the Dumbledore knew what happened.

"Harry, even if you can't forgive one man's mistake, please don't do this. Don't abandon your beliefs and your morals." Dumbledore gave a long sigh. "Tom, maybe your father in name and blood, but he has been everything but a father. He is a selfish, diabolical man with desires so outrageous that it has corrupted him and has caused him to sin beyond redemption. You, Harry, are nothing like him."

"I know who my father is and though I may not fully understand or like him, he is my father and thus deserves the respect, worship and admiration of his son. This has never been a matter of understanding Dumbledore, but accepting. I had never been given a choice in life. I had to accept being the Boy-Who-Lived and now I have to accept being the Dark heir."

"You're like a son to me! I raised you. I took you in. I protected you, without prejudice to the your lineage. Do you realize what it means to grow up as Voldemort's son? Do you realize how much the world would have changed?"

"It's too late Dumbledore. As I said, all this is is a matter of acceptance. The fact that I am Lord Voldemort's son will never change. You would have been my enemy then, as you are now. Don't try to rebut that either, we both know that if I had grown up differently, I would have been on your enemy list, in fact, number 2, right under my father."

"Fate and destiny can only go so far. It is the choices that count."

"So much for choices, we're back at where we begun."

"You maybe Tom's son, but you can still fight against him. You never had a father, having one now makes little difference. Again I implore you Harry, please do not condemn the world to doom because of one man's mistake."

"Why shall I care about the world? They have done nothing but stomp on me. All they want is the Boy-Who-Lived. Go find yourself another one, it seemed easy enough to turn me into one."

Dumbledore was speechless. He didn't know how to respond to that.

"I have already made my choice." Harry continued. "Perhaps I would have made a different one if you hadn't conjured that false prophecy, if you hadn't kept anything from me, if you had protected me in a way that would have ensured my everlasting loyalty."

"I'm sorry Harry..." Dumbledore bowed his head.

Harry got up to leave. He snapped his fingers and the door swung open.

"There's nothing more to say."

"Harry please..."

Harry did not turn.

"I know it is too late but Harry, be reasonable."

"It's too late, Dumbledore. From now on we take our separate paths. Try as you might, you won't be able to prevent the inevitable. Voldemort's back and this he won't be alone."

With that Harry left the office.


	6. Various Conversations

**Chapter 6 Various Conversations**

Harry felt a pair of hands shake him. Slowly his eyes flickered opened.

"Glasses..." Someone gave them to him. He looked around, recognizing the boy's dormitory in the Gryffindor tower.

How did I get up here? Oh yeah, I remember now. I left Dumbledore's office yesterday nigh, but…

How he managed to get back up to the tower, he had no idea.

"Harry, Harry! Are you alright mate?" He turned his head to see Ron staring at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"What happened to you this summer? You know we were very worried about you—me, Hermione and the rest."

Harry snorted.

"Oh, nothing. Everything is fine."

Ron looked at him unbelievingly.

"You sure mate?"

"Yes, I am. I told you, I'm fine! Nothing happened in the summer. I just got tired of writing to people who wouldn't reply!"

Ron looked around. He didn't like the rough start between them.

"Alright, alright." Ron waved his hands defensively. He got up to leave.

"Now where are you going?"

"Breakfast, you want to come?"

"Sure, why not." The two boys got up to leave for breakfast.

"Hey Harry! Ron! Over here!" Hermione waved to them from the Gryffindor table. Ron sat down beside her, while Harry sat on the opposite side of them.

"So Harry, what happened in the summer? Why did you stop writing?"

"I just told Ron that nothing happened. Just got tired of writing to you guys that's all."

"That's not true. I know it's not."

"It is. Besides, I don't want to talk about it."

"Hey, here's this years schedules..." Ginny interrupted, handing them out. She sat down next to Hermione.

"Umm thanks."

"And oh Harry, here's your O.W.L. scores." Harry took the pack from her.

"You didn't receive your O.W.L.'s?"

"No..."

"Go open them." Harry did so. He skimmed the list.

Ordinary Wizarding Level Results

Pass Grades Fail Grades

Outstanding (O) Poor (P)

Exceeds Expectations (E) Dreadful (D)

Acceptable (A) Troll (T)

Harry James Potter has achieved:

Astronomy A

Care of Magical Creatures E

Defense Against the Dark Arts O

Divination P

Herbology E

History of Magic D

Potions E

Transfiguration E

"Only failed Divination and History of Magic, and who cares about them?" Ron said happily to Harry. "Knew you'll be top at Defense Against the Dark Arts." Ron continued, punching Harry on the shoulder.

"But it looks like you won't be taking Potions." Hermione said. "Snape doesn't accept anything less then an O from the students in his N.E.W.T. class.

Harry shrugged. Even though he and Snape were on better terms then before, it wasn't like taking Potions would help him in his plan to take over the world as the Dark heir. He could always have someone else brew potions for him. Of course it would be better if he had an excuse to see Snape, but some things just couldn't be helped.

At that moment the owls flew in to deliver the mail. A large, black owl landed in front of Harry. Harry recognized the owl at once, since it belonged to Voldemort.

"Who's that from?" Ron asked as Harry took the envelope.

"Um...no one..." Harry glanced up at the staff table. He met Dumbledore's and Snape's eyes. They both looked curious. Harry looked away, glancing back at the envelope.

On the front was written

Mr. H. Potter

Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry

Harry flipped it over. On the back was sealed with a serpent. He wondered if he should open it here.

"Go on, don't keep us waiting." Ginny spoke up.

"Yeah, open it mate."

Harry nodded, opening the envelope and then read the letter silently.

Thomas,

Don't worry. This is an enchanted letter. I've cast a spell so that only you can read it. It would look blank to any unwanted eyes.

Well to the point. I want to meet you at Hogwarts. Pick a place and time. I'll tell you everything tonight.

Send me your reply with my owl.

Lord Voldemort

"Harry, it's blank..."

"Yeah, who sent it to you?"

Harry looked up at Hermione.

"No idea. Hermione, you got a quill, ink and paper?" She nodded, pulling some out from her bag. He took it, writing his reply.

Father,

Received letter. Tonight, at midnight, in the Chamber of Secrets.

See you there,

Thomas

Harry carefully folded the letter, tied it onto the black owl and watched it fly away.

"What did you write?"

"Nothing. Just told whoever it was to stop sending me blank parchments."

"I see." Ginny got up. "Well see you guys later, I'm going to class."

"Yeah see you."

Both Ron and Hermione stood up.

"You coming Harry?"

"Yeah..." He glance down at his schedule and groaned. "Man, double Transfiguration and then double Defense Against the Dark Arts."

"At least Lupin's back."

"Yeah, at least Lupin's back." Harry agreed.

There was a moment of silence.

"Come on then, don't want to be late to Transfiguration." Hermione spoke up.

The group made it to her class just as the bell rang.

Two hours later, Harry stood up to leave, glad that class was over.

"Potter, a word with you."

Harry nodded.

"Hermione go on to Potions. Snape'll have your neck for being late. Ron go to your next class. I'll see you both at lunch."

"See you then mate." Ron said as he and Hermione headed off.

Professor McGonagall waited for the class to leave before talking to Harry.

"Potter, as you know, Angelina, Alicia, and the Weasley's have left."

"Yeah..."

"Then Quidditch…"

"I was banned Professor..."

"Umbridge won't know." She paused. "There are no beaters or keeper. We also need two more chasers."

"How about the other players? The most we need to do is replace 4 people."

"Well let me put it this way, there are only two remaining experienced members, the rest are new."

"I know..."

"The point is I'm making you the Quidditch captain."

"Me? Why not Katie?"

"She's leaving next year, I don't want to keep switching captains."

"Oh"

"Which means I'll be leaving you to reform the Qudditch team."

"What's wrong with the…?"

"I'll tell you what's wrong! Besides you and Katie, they're all like Ron. You haven't forgotten about the whole "Weasley is our King" ordeal, have you?"

Harry shook his head, indicating that he still remembered.

"Why can't Katie, do it?"

"Because you are Captain. Besides, I think James would be very proud of you."

"Fine." Harry turned to leave, but paused as she called out to him.

"Potter..."

"Yeah?"

"I think you would need this." She took out his Firebolt and handed it to him. "This belongs to you. This is the best broom there is so treasure it. Don't let it hit the Whomping Willow."

"I won't."

"Good." she paused. "By the way Harry, who sent this broom to you, I mean it just showed up, right when you needed it the most."

"My godfather, Sirius..."

She gripped his arm. He shook her off.

"I'm sorry Harry, I shouldn't have asked."

"It's all right Professor. I don't want to talk about it. I don't want to talk about what happened a couple of months ago."

With that said, he shrunk his broom, placed it in his pocket before he turned around to leave. He had walked halfway to the dungeons where he wanted to talk to Snape, when something drew his attention.

"Hey Michael. Please I've got to get to class," a voice said.

Knowing the voice, he headed towards it.

"Michael, I really need to get to class."

"No Cho, tell me why you've been avoiding me." Michael Conner had Cho Chang cornered.

"Michael, I can't talk to you right now. I need to get to class."

"Binns won't mind."

"Well I do."

"Tell me why, and I'll let you go."

"Michael..."

"Expelliarmus!" Harry cried out, pulling out his wand after he had said the spell. Michael fell backwards. When he landed, he turned around to see Harry standing behind him.

"Stay away from her Conner."

Michael seemed surprised.

"STUPEFY!"

Conner fell back, slamming onto the wall, face first.

"Potter...Potter..." was all Conner managed to say before he was frozen.

"You got that Conner? You mess with Cho, you're messing with me. You got a problem with that Conner, cause I could fix it. DIFFNDO!"

Conner's bag split open before everything fell out.

"Well looks like you'll be busy." Harry paused. "Come on Cho, let's get out of here."

Harry threw Connors wand back to him and unstuned him. Cho glanced back at Michael before leaving with Harry. The two remained silent for a while.

"Um Harry, thanks for..."

"It's nothing."

Cho stopped. Harry turned to face her.

"I mean, you're alone now, Cedric's gone. I'm not going to let anything happen to you. You understand that?"

"Thanks Harry, you don't know how much this means to me." She paused, and started to walk again. Harry followed behind her.

"Cho, what is your next class?" Harry asked, after awhile.

"Binns..."

"You want me to walk you up, it's no problem. I don't want Conner to get to you again." She slowly shook her head.

"You'll be late..."

"I'm on break. I was just heading to Snape to speak to him about something."

"I guess I could walk you there, it's just on the other side of the hall." Cho said.

Harry blushed.

"Well thanks, but only if you are sure."

The two headed to the dungeons in silence, each enjoying the other's company. When they were near, Harry swore when he noticed that class hadn't started and that the students were still waiting outside.

"Oh...Potter and Chang! Potter and Chang!" Pansy Parkinson shrieked, as the two passed by the Slytherins. Cho blushed red. Harry glared at Pansy.

"Well Harry, I'll see you later. Keep in touch."

Harry nodded as Cho left for her class.

When Cho was out of earshot, Harry rounded on Pansy.

"Yeah so what? You got a problem with that?"

Malfoy stepped in front of her, followed by Crabbe, and Goyle.

"Yeah Potter. I've got a problem with that."

Hermione who had just noticed Harry, grasped onto him.

"Easy Harry, easy..." Hermione whispered. "Why are you here anyways? You don't have Potions."

Harry shrugged her off. He went and pulled Malfoy by the collar, lifting him above the ground.

"Never mess with me again Malfoy. Cruico!"

Malfoy started to shriek in pain, as he struggled to break free of the curse. Harry lifted it instantly, watching the other twitch on the floor.

"Remember that Malfoy, never mess with me again."

"I'll tell father. He'll get you for this." Malfoy said panting.

The door to the dungeons suddenly flew open with Snape billowing out.

"What is all this? Potter why are you here? You did not pass…"

Harry turned to Snape, meeting his eyes. Snape inclined his head slightly.

"I'm afraid there must be an misunderstanding. I need Potions. I'm expected to become an Auror, but how can I do so, without taking Potions?"

Snape eyed him, not knowing what to say. Luckily he didn't have to say anything as Draco interrupted.

"Professor...Professor...Potter he...he...he used an unforgivable!"

Snape's eyes became slit like as he furthered studied Harry.

"Is that so?" Snape finally acknowledged Draco's concern.

"Perhaps," was Harry's reply. He gave his Potion Professor a look that challenged the other's authority over him, waiting to see what the other would do.

"Because of Potter's insolence, I am forced to cancel class for today. As a Professor, I must properly deal with this matter of utmost importance."

No one moved. Everyone stared blankly at Snape.

"Class is canceled!" Snape raised his voice, this time effectively causing the others to scatter. When everyone was gone, Snape walked down the hall to his office. Harry followed behind him.

"Young master," Snape now bowed fully to him after he had locked the office and placed a silencing charm. He then straightened up, staring down at his student with an unreadable mask.

Harry carefully studied the man before him.

"We need to talk Snape." Harry said at last. "Lunch is in about an hour or so, so I'll be blunt. I do not wish to miss any of it."

"And what exactly is it that we need to speak of?"

"Shall we start with your loyalties?" Harry said softly.

"I am loyal to the Dark Lord." Snape said evenly, his face still unreadable. Then man then hesitated before adding "and in turn, I will be loyal to you."

"I'm placing much faith on that statement Snape." Harry murmured. "I hope I can trust you. I know you know Occlumency, but do not think this will protect you. Over the summer I have master the skill, in fact I have mastered Legilmency as well. Never forget that. I know you are part of the Order and I know you are part of the Inner Circle. You should consider whose side to be loyal to for there will be a time when the Final Battle will arrive and when it does, you can only fight for one side."

"I am a Death Eater. My only goal is to strive to be the best."

"Don't ever let me question that loyalty. If I do then…" Harry trailed off, letting the man think of the consequences.

"As you are well aware Snape," Harry began again, changing the topic. "I will not be allowed to take N.E.W.T. potions."

"Shall I change the policy?" Snape asked, glad that they weren't talking about loyalties anymore.

"No, that will be too suspicious. I do not want anyone to think that you're doing it for me, especially for me. If you did, Dumbledore would have your head and the rest of the school would be wondering why you did it."

"That's reasonable. However, you did come here to add, did you not?"

"That was a distraction." Harry corrected. "But this does pose as a problem. In case anything happened, I would have no reason to contact you. In fact, I have no business to be around you."

"What do you propose, young Master?"

"Remedial Potions." Harry smirked.

"But you already mastered…"

"No one knows I mastered it." Harry murmured. "Dumbledore would think you'll be teaching me Occulumency and he wouldn't be able to say anything about it, as he did order it. Everyone else will merely agree, as I did fail potions."

"Clever." Snape responded. "Then a time shall be arranged."

"Not necessary. Like I said, it's only an excuse. We'll use it when it is necessary. Besides, it also isn't good for Dumbledore to see me around you too much. He'll get suspicious, especially with private lessons."

"Yes of course."

Again silence fell between them.

"This morning at breakfast, father sent me a letter." Yet again Harry changed the subject.

"And what is young Master's orders?"

"I want to make sure Moaning Myrtle's bathroom is empty tonight at midnight, that no students or teachers are on that floor at all."

Snape looked at him wearily.

"Wandering at night is not good young Master."

"It is none of your business. Just make sure..."

"Yes young Master..."

Harry turned to leave. However, he paused at the door.

"I cannot stress this enough. Be wise in choosing your loyalties. Don't disappoint me."

"Yes, young Master..."

With that Harry left Snape to think about were his loyalties lay.

* * *

Harry emerged from the dungeons to eat lunch with Ron and Hermione.

"One more class left." Ron said happily.

"Yes..." Harry sighed.

"So you and Cho are together again?"

"Yeah, I think so."

Ron grinned.

"That's great Harry." Hermione added.

"Um Harry..."

Harry looked up to see Cho standing by them.

"Well excuse me guys." He got up and left the group.

"Yeah Cho, what is it?"

"Nothing much, just wanted to see you."

"Oh..."

The two strolled through the hallways together.

"You know Harry, what happened last summer? I was really worried. I mean after you stopped writing..."

Harry sighed.

"Nothing really, you stopped first."

"That was because Conner was jealous. He didn't want me to see other guys."

"Then I suppose we shouldn't be seen together." Harry sounded sad.

"But that isn't the point. I actually want to see you. That's why I've been avoiding him over the summer. To tell you the truth I wanted to see how much you cared for me, to see if you would get jealous if I went out with someone else."

"Well I have to admit I am."

"I know, and you did exactly what I wanted you to do." She clung onto his arm, leaning on his shoulder. Harry continued to walk with her, until classes began again.

"Cho, what do you have next?"

"Charms."

"I'll walk you there."

Cho smiled at him. She nodded and the two walked hand in hand to Flickwick's classroom.

As like before, similar to the Slytherins, a group of Ravenclaw girls, the ones that followed Cho around, giggled as Cho and Harry passed by.

"Oh, look, Potter and Chang..." they whispered.

"Hey! So what if Potter's going out with Chang, you got a problem with that?"

Harry turned to see the Gryffindor chaser Katie Bell.

"Thanks Katie..."

She smiled at him.

"No, problem Harry." She paused. "Hey Cho..."

"Hey..."

"Well see you guys later, have to get to class. Lupin might like me, but I don't want to be late. See you Cho! See you Katie!"

"See you Harry!" Cho waved back at him.

As it turned out, Harry was late to class.

"Well Harry hurry up, class has started. Why are you late?" Lupin asked.

"Um...cause I was...was..."

Professor Lupin looked sideways at him, waiting for an explanation.

"Bathroom..." he muttered, before taking his seat, in between Ron and Hermione. Lupin didn't look like he believed him, but he didn't make any more comments either.

Defense Against the Dark Arts ended up passing by the quickest. It was the only class that Harry looked forward to and was disappointed that it was over. Even though he was deeply influenced by the Dark Arts now, knowing the defensive spells would not do any harm.

Like in his last class, Lupin called him to stay behind. Both Ron and Hermione lingered behind, hoping that he wouldn't mind.

"Off you go Ron, Hermione. I need to talk to Harry alone." Lupin said.

"Come on, we can stay to. We're his best friends you know." Ron complained. Hermione, having a better mind, pulled Ron off. Lupin gave her a thankful nod.

"You should leave. I want to talk to him alone." Harry added. "I'll find you guys later."

"If you say so mate."

Harry nodded, watching his friends leave.

"Harry, how are you? You alright?" Lupin asked, pulling up a chair and sitting down by his side. Knowing Lupin, the question wasn't as simple as it appeared.

"It still gets to me, I don't want to talk about it really..." Harry got up to leave.

"Sit down Harry. We need to talk. You need to talk about your feelings and emotions, don't keep it inside." He paused, as Harry sat back down. "I know this isn't easy for you, having lost your parents and now Sirius. I want you to know that I'm still here for you, that I still care."

"You don't..."

"Yes, I do. Of course I do."

"Then why didn't you reply throughout the summer? Then why was I once again left clueless?"

"I'm sorry Harry, I know I should have written to you. I feel I should be the one to take responsibility of you." Remus tried to explain. "I was busy..."

"See busy! Everyone's always too busy for me."

"Tell me Harry, how can I make it up to you?" The boy did not reply. He watched as Lupin took out a packet.

"This was the reason I was busy Harry."

Harry took the packet and opened it.

Inside was a photo album. Harry flipped through it, his jaw immediately dropping. The pictures he saw all included James, Lily, Sirius and Lupin, as teenagers and adults.

"It was all I could find Harry. I had asked the Order for pictures, except they weren't much help. I had to find them all myself. I hope this makes you feel better."

"Moony, I don't know how I could thank you." He leapt up and hugged the old man. "You have no idea how much this means to me."

"Consider it as your 16 year old birthday present." Lupin said as he released Harry. "Now Harry, you know I care about you. Now that Sirius is gone, I hope you could look up to me, not just as a teacher, but as another father, godfather, brother, whatever you like me to be."

"Of course Moony."

Lupin fingered Harry's hair.

"You can always talk to me. You can always count on me. I'll always be here when you need me. I want you to know that I'll risk everything for you, I have no regrets."

Harry felt happy, knowing there were still people out there who still cared for him, who still loved him.

* * *

Harry carefully put on his invisibility cloak. He studied the Marauder's Map, making sure that his path to Moaning Myrtle's bathroom was clear.

"Good, there's no one." He quickly left the common room, heading to meet his father.

/Open/ Harry hissed softly at the entrance to the Chamber of Secrets. He watched as the sink parted. Taking a deep breath, he enters the chamber.

/Close./ He watched as the sink closed, before taking the familiar path that he took in his 2nd year to rescue Ginny.

The chamber was still the same as he remembered it, so were the pillars and the lighting. In the middle of it all Harry could make out a large figure that was curled up. He stepped closer realizing who it was.

/Nagini, why are you here? Where is father?/

The snake looks up at him.

/I've been sent to watch over you young Master.../

/How do you think you can do that? Where are you going to hide?/

/The pipes./

Harry smiled.

"Thomas." Harry spun around.

"Father?" He didn't see anyone. "Father where are you?"

A high pitched voiced laughed.

"I am everywhere son, thought you would notice that by now."

"I know, but physically you are not here, are you?"

"Of course not, I'm safe inside my chamber."

"I didn't expect you to show up here at Hogwarts."

"I can if I wanted to."

"But don't, I don't want anything to happen to you."

There was a moment of silence.

"Well now, I don't have much time. I need to tell you what I have planed."

"What? Oh I know, you want to take over the world."

"Of course, but we have a long way to go and a lot of things to do before then."

"Like what?"

"We need to plan this out."

"How?"

"First of all, Dumbledore needs to be out of the picture. Then we can take over Hogwarts. After that, everything is ours for the taking."

"That old man, shouldn't be a problem."

"He's the first step. He'll put up a good fight, I expect, but he has a weakness."

"A weakness?" Harry questioned.

"Yes, once we take away whatever that is precious to him, then ideally, he'll do anything to get them back, right?"

"Them?"

"Yes, innocent people."

"I see, then what can I do?" Harry asked as he laughed.

"You can always keep me informed and you can start by building your reputation as my son."

"You mean I should..."

"Do whatever is necessary to build a name that the whole world would one day fear."

"Do whatever is necessary." Harry repeated.

"And you can search for your own supporters, or search for more people to join the Dark Arts."

"Good idea."

/Nagini, take care of him for me./ Lord Voldemort addressed the snake.

/Yes Master.../

"Thomas, I'll keep in touch with you soon, goodbye for now."

"Bye father."

There was no reply.

/Nagini, I'm leaving. I have to go back to the common room./

/Yes master./

Harry patted her once before leaving the chamber, his mind still on the conversation he just had with his father.


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

The next morning Harry sat down at the Gryffindor table and poked at his breakfast, still thinking about what had happened yesterday. It was still early, so only Snape was sitting at the staff table.

"Harry, is there something bothering you?" Hermione asked. "I mean, you've been..."

"No really, I'm fine."

"She's right mate, you don't seem alright at all."

"I am." At that moment a barn owl flew in to the Great Hall, carrying a Howler. The students fell silent, waiting to hear what was written inside.

"I wonder who received a Howler this time." Hermione said.

"We'll find out, I mean we'll all hear it." Ron added.

Harry remained silent, watching as the barn owl landed on top of Malfoy's plate. He abruptly stood up, realizing that he wouldn't want anyone to find out what was written in it.

_Malfoy__, he better learn never to send a Howler again. If this has anything to do with me, then he'll pay._

Harry swiftly walked over to the Slytherin table, standing before Malfoy.

"Give me it. Give me it now, otherwise you'll regret it." Harry whispered.

"Why should I Potter.?"

"Otherwise everyone will..."

"HOW COULD YOU DRACO!" Lucius's voice boomed, interrupting the small conversation. "HOW COULD YOU..."

At that moment Harry sized the Howler from Malfoy.

"Hey Potter, give me..." Harry ignored him. Instead he taped his finger on the Howler. It instantly fell silent.

"There..." Malfoy took the Howler from Harry.

"What did you, how did you...?"

"It doesn't matter..." Then Harry lowered his voice. "The real message your father has sent has been converted to writing. Read it somewhere private. When you are done burn it."

Draco looked as though he was going to ask a question.

"Don't ask now..." Harry snapped his finger. Another letter appeared.

"This will explain everything. Remember never ever let anyone read either of these. You understand. They are worth more to me then your life."

Draco took it, giving him a confused look. Then Harry turned to leave, snapping his fingers once more. The Howler then started to speak again.

"LOSE TO POTTER. YOU ARE A DISGRACE TO THE MALFOY FAMILY. FAIL TO KICK POTTER'S STICKEN ASS AGAIN, THEN YOU WON'T BE MY SON!" With that the Howler burst into flames.

Draco's face turned extremely red from embracement. He turned to see Harry, Ron and Hermione at the door of the Great Hall.

"POTTER!" he screamed, taking out his wand, and pointing it at Harry. Harry paused. "I challenge you to a duel. Here and now!"

"Who's your second?"

"Don't need one! We're taking this to the end!"

"I'll be his second..." Snape stood up, standing behind Malfoy. Harry turned to face Malfoy, then glanced up at Snape with a threatening look.

"You sure about this?"

"Yes."

"Then I accept." Harry waved his wand, causing all four tables to disappear. The few students who were eating breakfast stood up and formed a circle, surrounding the two duelists.

"Harry, no please don't." Hermione whispered. Both Ron and Hermione had taken hold of his robes. Harry shook them off, and stood forward.

"Potter, let us finish what we started in our second year at the Dueling Club."

"My pleasure."

"Who's your second, you must have one, since I am his second." Snape spoke up. Harry glared at him.

"That would be me." Lupin said as he strolled into the Great Hall. "Ron, Hermione, stay out." The two of them nodded, leaving the room. He stepped behind Harry, placing a hand on his shoulder. Harry looked up at him. He smiled down at Harry. Harry nodded before turning back to Snape, locking eyes with him.

_Remember to make sure Draco finds the real message in his letters. Make sure no one else finds out. It's about father and __I__ so..._

Snape stared at him intently. Finally he took in the message. He bent down slightly and then whispered in Draco's ear.

"See me in my office later. Bring the letters. For now just play along and see what the Dark Lord's heir wants."

Draco looked at him, even more confused.

Harry stepped forward. Draco did so too, both meeting in the center.

"Where's your wand?"

"Don't need one."

"Whatever." Draco raised his wand at his opponent. "COLLOP..." Before he could finish the spell Harry had already yelled.

"ACCIO WAND!" Malfoy's wand was in Harry's hand. Draco's mouth dropped as did everyone else.

"Wandless ma..." Draco tried to stammer.

"SERPENSORTIA!" A gigantic snake flew out of the wand. Many people screamed.

/Get him, get Malfoy./ he hissed at the snake. The snake did so, slithering towards Malfoy.

"There that's more like it, that was how we left off last time." Harry grinned at Malfoy with a look that almost looked like he enjoyed it.

/Strangle him lightly, but don't kill him—just enough to build fear./ The snake nodded. Draco watched as the snake coiled herself around him. More people screamed. The Slytherin looked pleadingly at Snape, who seemed stiff, like everyone else.

/Gently bite him, enough for him to feel pain./ The snake opened her mouth, sinking her teeth into Malfoy's flesh. Draco yelled out in pain. Tears rolled down his cheeks.

"Feel it, feel the pain. Never ever mess with me. No one messes with me." Harry paused. "Tell your father to face me himself, that is, if he's got the guts to do so."

"It's seems to me Snivellus, you are up for Malfoy here is in no condition to duel." Lupin whispered lazily. Snape nodded, stepping in front of Malfoy, raising his wand at Harry.

"STUFF...!"

"ENOUGH!" A voice boomed behind Harry. Dumbledore, McGonagall, Ron and Hermione had appeared. Snape lowered his wand.

"My god, look at Malfoy!" McGonagall cried. "POTTER!"

/Alright, that's enough.../ Harry hissed. The snake took one last look at Malfoy, before uncoiling herself. Then it slithered out of the Great Hall.

/Thanks, I really appreciate your help./ The snake nodded towards him, as if bowing. Dumbledore looked at the snake, then at Harry.When the snake passed by Dumbledore, he waived his wand and brandished the snake.

"You four in my office immediately!" Dumbledore said coldly.

* * *

"Explain yourselves."was the first thing the Headmaster stated when they were all packed into his office. 

"Malfoy started it!"Harry said defensively. Dumbledore glanced at Malfoy.

"Did you?"

"He challenged me to a duel so it's his fault. I gave him what he deserved." Harry cut in.

"And Severus, Remus, you did not stop this, instead you choose to be their seconds." They nodded. Dumbledore grew even angrier.

"Suspended! Both of you for a week," he glanced at Harry. "I would have you both expelled…"

"You can't!" Lupin cut in.

"But I see under the new circumstances, it would cause immense complications." No one spoke. Dumbledore glanced at each one, seeing if they understood his implicit meaning. He was disappointed to find that Harry was the only one who gave any indication that he understood the underlying meaning.

"Very well Severus, take Draco to the hospital wing, Lupin I believe you have a class to teach. I'd like to speak with Harry alone."

"Here Professor." Harry threw a small bottle of blue liquid to Snape. "Antidote for the snake bite. No need to go to the hospital wing, I'll come by later to arrange a time for," Harry paused here, thinking. "Remedial potions."

Snape nodded before leading Draco out. Again Dumbledore glanced suspiciously between his Potion Master's retreating back and Harry. He wondered briefly if there was something more to this then Occlumency lessons as one of them was the Dark heir and the other was a Death Eater.

* * *

"Man Potter, I have him pay for this." Draco whispered under his breath. Snape gave a small cough, meaning he heard what he had said.

"Sorry Professor." Snape steered the two of them, into his office, shutting its door, and placing a silencing charm around the office.

"Here, take it..."Snape gave the antidote to Malfoy. Draco eyed it suspiciously.

"Professor, how do you know it is not poison?"

"Because if the Dark Lord's son wanted to kill you, then there won't be anyone who could save you."

"The Dark Lord has a son?" Draco blurted out.

"Yes and today he showed you mercy—be thankful."

"Who is the Dark Lord's son?"Draco asked curiously. "Wait, no it can't be him, it's not possible."

"I'm surprised Lucius didn't tell you."

"Father is in Azkaban, because of Potter."

"And also because of Potter, he is out of Azkaban." Then Snape pointed at the letters that Draco still carried. "I presume all would be explained inside."

* * *

Dumbledore watched Lupin disappear completely before placing a silencing charm in his office. Harry grinned. Neither spoke for a while. 

"You are afraid of father, are you not Albus?" Harry had to ask.

"Of course not, he is afraid of me!"

"You were afraid to expel me." Harry countered. Dumbledore chose to ignore that statement.

"He has always feared me." Dumbledore spoke coldly. Harry slammed his fist on the table.

"Liar. Voldemort does not fear you."

"He has, that is until the secret was let out." He paused. "How many people know anyway?"

"Just a few. Only my most loyal servants do, and of course the Death Eaters."

"You do not have servants, they belong to Voldemort."

"I will soon. I formed the DA last year..."

"You aren't going to..." Even as Dumbledore said this, he wasn't sure he believed himself.

"Turn them against you? Well that depends. Besides, don't you find it a coincidence that the DA also stands for the Dark Arts? Humph! Dumbledore's Army what a joke it was..." Harry laughed evilly. Dumbledore sighed.

"Well you better watch yourself, and the rest of the people at this school: pure-bloods, mudbloods..." Dumbldore looked up at the mention of mudbloods, fury in his eyes. "And half-bloods. You won't be there to save them all. One day, you will regret ever opposing Voldemort, you will regret what you did to me. I'll always remember the first 16 years of my miserable life."

"Harry I..."

"Thomas." Harry corrected. He then released the silencing charm."Enough said, I have more important business to attend to."

* * *

Draco's eyes widened in fear as he read the letter from his father, then the one that Harry gave him. 

"You now know the truth Draco," Snape whispered as Draco looked up, thoroughly shaken by the sudden news.

"So, Potter is Thomas, and Thomas is Potter. So he is Master's son and heir?"

"Yes."

Both Snape and Draco reeled around at the voice. Standing in the doorway was Thomas Riddle.

"Young Master, how did you, when did you..."

"Ah Severus, it does not matter."

Snape was on both knees kissing the hem of Thomas's robes.Thomas glanced sideways at Draco.

"You've told him."

"Yes, young Master..."

"And his response?"

At this Draco too took Snape's example.

"Young Master forgive me, I ask for your forgiveness."

"Like Voldemort..." Both of them flinched at the name. "Like father, I do not forgive or forget, I punish and reward..."Thomas could see the fear in the other boy's eyes. Thomas chuckled softly. He reached out and touched Draco's wound. He winced slightly.

"Heal..." They watched as Draco was fully healed.

"Thank you, thank you young Master."

"You deserve it, you both have done well. Severus you've done well concealing my identity. Both of you keep it up."

"We will young Master..." Thomas nodded. He turned to leave, pausing at the door, transforming into Harry once more.

* * *

"Harry! Harry!" He stopped at the foot of the staircase. "Harry!" Cho waved as she sped up to him. 

"Hey Cho."

"Harry are you alright? He didn't get you did he?" Harry gave her a confused look.

"Everybody's heard it you know, about the duel this morning." He sighed. The two walked slowly, strolling outside. People who passed them scurried off in the opposite direction.

"Oh I see..."

"Did Malfoy get you, are you hurt, is Dumbledore's punishment really bad?"

"I'm fine Cho, he didn't get me. I got him, and now Dumbledore's got both of us suspended for a week..."

Cho sighed. She held onto his arm.

"You know what I think? I think Malfoy deserved it."

"You really think so?"

He looked into her eyes.

"Yeah, I hate people who are like that."

"Me too..."

At that moment a bell rang, signaling the end of lunch.

"Cho, so who do you have next?"

"Transfiguration..."

He took her arm, walking her to class.

"Ah Potter , what are you doing here with Miss. Chang?" McGonagall eyed him suspiciously. "Don't you have Binns now..."

"Got suspended from classes for a week Professor."

She looked at him darkly.

"Very well, Professor Lupin has been trying to find you all day. He has a free period right now."

"Yeah, I'll go see what he wants."

Then for the first time, he bent down and kissed Cho's hand, palm down, causing her to blush furiously.

"I'll see you around Cho!"

"Yeah, I'll see you later Harry!"

McGonagall looked at both of them, shaking her head slightly.

* * *

Harry opened Lupin's office door. He waited outside, seeing that Dumbldore was talking with Lupin. Dumbldore looked and seeing Harry up then stood. 

"Well, I suppose I'll leave the two of you alone. Remus, consider what I just said, I'm sure you'll find me quite reasonable."

Harry stepped in, shutting the door behind the headmaster.

"Moony, what was that about?"

"Nothing really, I'm sure Albus didn't mean a word he said."

"Well?" Harry pressured on.

"He said I should act more fatherly to you. Better this way because he says you are taking on the wrong path, claims you know too much Dark Arts, claims you're a threat to us all."

Harry gritted his teeth.

_That bastard! So he's trying to be persuasive, trying to use Moony against me. He'll pay for __this,__ he'll pay if he takes away those who care for me, who truly care._

"You don't believe him do you? You won't stop me would you? You won't force me to do what I hate most will you?"

Moony shook his head.

"I don't believe Albus. I think I know you better then he does. I care for you, it never occurred to me that he did." Harry smiled. "I'll stick up for you no matter what, right or wrong, like this morning."

"Thank you."

"About you going to the Dark Arts, that is pure rubbish. I'll put my whole life at stake, if I have to, there is no way that he is correct. I don't believe a word he says." He paused. "And you shouldn't too Harry. Never let any of that crap get to you, you understand Harry?"

"Yeah, this won't bother me, I've been through worst." he paused. Lupin smiled.

"There's a good lad. Remember this Harry, I don't care how many school rules you break, I won't stop you from doing what you want."

"You won't?" Harry questioned.

"Hey, I never stopped James or Sirius, did I?"

"No." Harry brightens up.

"But remember, if you ever get into a life threatening situation, you can be sure to find me there, I'll risk my life for your sake, your future."

_Moony, you do care. I'm so sorry. I know I'll only disappoint you with the truth. So much has been going on, so much I wish I could tell you, but I know it would only mean disaster for both of us._

"Thank you Moony, I'll remember this."

Lupin smiled.

"Hey, I'll always be here for you. You can always count on me."

The two hugged each other. Tears streaked down Harry's eyes.

_Lupin__, Moony, I'm so sorry. Please forgive for what I have done. Pleas forgive me for what I will do._


	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

Saturday came by in a wiz. Harry was once again inside the Chamber of Secrets, as he had been for the past few days, using the time he and Malfoy were suspended wisely.

_Dumbledore, you made a big mistake. You shouldn't have suspended me. I thought by now you'll keep a better eye on me but no, you choose to ignore me. You choose to ignore reality. Perhaps it is better this way, at least for me. Now with all this free time I can plan a way to help father. I won't be this stupid to waste this precious time. I'll find a way to take over Hogwarts, a way to make the wizarding world fear me._

Harry patted Nagini gently. He had been thinking and planning on how to make his first move. He decided to begin the reign of terror as soon as the last and final touches of his plan were set in motion.

/I'll be back soon. I must begin to move. This world must begin to move towards darkness.../

/Yes, young Master. I fully agree but still I wish to know your plans./

/Aw, inpatient are we?/ The snake shook it's head. /You'll find out soon, Nagini, you'll find out very soon. Perhaps as soon as Halloween./

/But that is still less then a month away./

/Until my first attack I must gather my servants. In addition I must test out loyalties. I don't want any traitors./

The snake nodded bowing its head before it watched his young Master disappear through the corridor that linked the chamber and the school.

* * *

Harry examined the large poster which he had just hung up inside the Gryffindor Common Room. On it were seven Quidditch players. Besides the Seeker and one of the Chasers, who had the face of Harry and Katie, the others were all faceless.

Quidditch Signups

All interested players welcome!

First Match: October 31 Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw

Place: Quidditch Pitch

Date/Time: Starting September 10 at 5:30 PM

Positions: Harry James Potter – Seeker/Captain

Katie Bell-Chaser

All other Positions available!

Check it out today!

Contact Harry Potter for complete details

"Hey, it's wonderful Harry"

"Yeah Katie, I suppose"

"Wonder who's going to try out this year. Do you have any ideas?"

"No, not yet." She patted his back.

"Better make it a better team then last year's."

"I will, but you got to help me too."

"Sure."

* * *

The wind blew softly. The sky was still bright. The sun was towards the west, slowly setting in the background behind the empty Quidditch Stands.

"Alright, let's begin." Harry said, holding his Firebolt in his right hand. Katie stood next to him with her broomstick. "I'm sure all of you know how to play Quidditch, and I suspect that you all came to try out for the team." There were a few murmurs of 'yes' through the gathered crowed.

"Now, get into three lines, according to the position that you wish to be." The people did as they were instructed. Then Harry went around taking down names.

"Keepers...hmm...Ron, Lavender ..." He continued down the line. "Neville, what a surprise, trying out for keeper." Neville turned red.

"Beaters, Dean, Colin..." He paused, frowning slightly at the amount of six years he got.

"And lastly Chasers... Hermione, Ginny, Seamus..." Finally he had a list of all who wanted to be apart of the team.

"Well, Katie, get them started, I'll sit back and go over the list of people..." Katie nodded.

"Ok, Harry, if you say so..."

Harry sat down on a seat in the stands. He didn't really like this year's team possibilities. In fact he didn't like any of these people at all. Still he did as McGonagall had said, just to please her. If he had a choice, he might as well forget about Quidditch, especially since he had more important matters to attend to. He didn't really pay close attention, only enough to be aware of the surroundings.

Two hours crept by. Harry just sat and stared ahead, watching all of them fly, not even getting on his broom once. Finally Katie came over to him.

"Hey Harry, aren't you going to ride?"

"No .not today." He stood up and stretched. "Think that's about enough, don't you agree?"

"Yeah, sure..." she paused, glancing down at the list. "Who do you think..." Harry didn't reply immediately.

"None actually, none of them were as good as three years ago, when Wood was still here."

"Yeah, I know."

"Well Katie, I'll let you decide, just tell me who you choose, and I'll go with it."

"But Harry..." He started to walk away.

"I'll just tell McGonagall afterwards."

"Yeah...yeah...sure..." her voice trailed off as she watch him leave the stadium alone, not bothering to wait for the rest or even his best friends Ron and Hermione.


	9. Halloween

**Chapter 9 Halloween**

Halloween came closer and closer. Everybody was up to the Halloween spirit. On top of that, the first Quidditch match was on that day. The Professors, however, did not seem to notice the restlessness in the classes. They taught and taught without dismissing any class until the bell rang. Even then there was plenty of homework.

"You know Harry, Halloween's coming up."

"Yeah Cho," Harry replied. The two were wandering around the corridors after lunch.

"In fact it's in two days and do you know what that means?"

"No what?"

"That Gryffindor's going to lose! We Ravenclaw's are getting the cup this year."

"Oh really?" Harry raised an eyebrow.

"I'll be the first to beat the famous Potter…"

"Didn't Cedric…"

"He tried to call it off. Besides, it doesn't count since there were dementors!"

Harry smiled.

"We'll see, we'll see, I doubt you'll win. Just because you're my girlfriend doesn't mean that I'll go easy on you."

"I expect nothing less; we'll both play our best." Harry nodded absentmindedly as he let his thoughts wonder off to his plans.

_You know Cho, there might not even be Quidditch this year. My plan is ready. I'll set it into motion soon. _

The two stopped in front of Ravenclaw's common room.

"Well, Harry I'm going to go. I need to go practice with my team, you know, I am captain." She paused. "Do you want to come watch?"

"Nah, I want you to surprise me, though I doubt I will be."

"Alright then, see you later. Bye Harry!"

"Bye Cho!" He watched she disappear through the portrait hole.

* * *

He waited inside the Room of Requirements. In his right hand he played with a golden gallon. Harry looked down at his watch, which showed that the person he was waiting for was late.

"Young master…." Draco came in hastily, breathlessly. "Forgive me for being late." He bowed once, before standing up, slightly hunched.

Harry nodded. "Leave the door open Malfoy…" he whispered as Draco was about to close it.

"Expecting some other people?" Harry raised his hand, and cut off, Draco's statement as footsteps echo through the hallways. He listened intently.

"He's come. Stand up straight Malfoy, don't want to seem suspicious just yet." Malfoy did as he was told.

"Umm…hi Harry, first DA meeting this year eh, sorry we're late." Colin and Dennis Creevey came walking in. Draco immediately blocked the exit. The two looked at each other, an uneasy feeling came over them.

"The others, they're late Harry." Dennis glanced at Malfoy. "Is he joining this year?" Harry shook his head.

"No one's coming. No one's here. .There is no DA meeting anymore." The two backed tracked two steps clinging onto each other.

"Then why are we here?"

"I want to know where your loyalties lie."

"We're loyal to you Harry. We're your friends, in fact, we're in the same house."

"Then let me ask you this, would you abandon everything you know, and join the Dark Arts, will you every do this? Would you turn your back on everyone you knew to join Voldemort." The two shook their heads vigorously.

"Never, Harry, never. You are our hero, our idol, we won't do anything to abandon you and the others." Harry sighed.

"That is all I need to know." The two turned to leave only to find. Draco with his wand pointed at them.

"I don't think you two will be leaving alive." Harry's voice was soft.

"What…what do you mean…." The brothers were shaking hard.

"You see, I am Lord Voldemort's son. I don't want any one to go blabbing around and spreading all these rumors."

"What, what do you mean, Harry? That is impossible! There is no way you can be You-Know-Who's son!" Dennis chirped.

"Too bad, you had your chance and now it is time for the two of you to die…." Draco muttered a few words and Dennis fell dead by his brother's feet. Colin was scared stiff, but common sense took over.

"Please Harry, spare me, spare me…" However Harry did not seem to be listening. He was laughing, laughing, like a manic who in a cold and icy voice said, "You useless wretch, I gave you a chance, but you refused."

Colin panicked. "Harry…Harry…" Harry looked at Draco. Draco nodded before executing his task.

No one spoke for a while. There was fear in the Slytherin's eyes. He had never seen Harry like that and it scared him to his bones. He now learned to fear the Gryffindor as he had feared Voldemort.

Harry picked up the bodies. "I'll hide them, you can go now." Draco bowed once more before hastily leaving.

* * *

Harry gently laid the dead bodies in the middle of the hallway. He then turned to the wall. Waving his wand a messaged appeared. He smirked at the words that he placed there. Then bending over he signed the bottom with his mark. He glanced at the arrangements and when he felt satisfied, he turned it all invisible with a spell that could be placed or taken away from anywhere at any time by the spell caster.

* * *

The Quidditch pitch was packed with people. All were excited about the first match of the season. Support for both houses could be seen on all the students and teachers.

Harry stared at the Quidditch stands, scanning the rows from top to bottom, left to right. His eyes landed on the staff section, noticing that Dumbledore had still not arrived.

"Hmmm, you noticed Harry, Dumbledore's not here yet." Hermione said next to him. She had made it as Chaser, along with Katie and Ginny. Ron was keeper, and the two beaters were Dean and Seamus.

"Yeah, I noticed."

"Where do you think he is, I mean the match can't start until he host it, mate." Harry put on a confused expression, though he knew perfectly well were the headmaster was.

_Hmmm, well I locked him in his office this morning after I snuck up on him and stunned him pretty badly. He was unconscious when I left. _

Harry smiled at his success. He couldn't believe Dumbledore would be so easy to get, but it did not surprise him. After all he was the Dark Lord's son, and heir. The intense training his father had given him had indeed paid off.

* * *

"Minerva where is Albus?" Madame Hooch asked, slightly annoyed hat the headmaster was late.

"I do not know, it is quite unlike him." She paused.

"The match must go on." Madame Hooch continued.

"Yes, I have to agree…" Severus cut in.

"But…."

"Get the match started. I'll go look for him." McGonagall stood up.

"I'm coming too." Snape added, standing up.

"Alright, I'll start the match, just get back before the match is over, especially since Harry's playing." McGonagall smiled.

"It'll be a record, if we come back before Harry catches the snitch." Snape mumbled. The two left the stadium.

* * *

"Welcome to the first Quidditch match of the year!" Luna yelled, as she was the new commentary. "Gryffindor against Ravenclaw!" There were shouts of support for both sides.

"And here are the Gryffindor's: Potter! Weasely! Weasely! Bell! Granger! Thomas and Finnigan!" As each player was named, they flew out and around the stadium. Harry flew in a circle before landing, on the center of the field.

Then Luna continued to name the Ravenclaw players "Chang!" Harry smiled. "Davis, Bradley, Boot, Brocklehurst, Turpin, and Patil!" There was another up roar of cheers, mostly from the Ravenclaw group. They also flew in the air, before Roger landed in front of Harry. The two glared at each other, before reluctantly shaking hands.

"And they are off!" Luna yelled. She did a step-by-step commentary. Harry however did not seem to hear her. He was too absorbed in trying to find the Snitch, with Cho flying next to him.

"Hehe, you know you can't trail me, I've got a Firebolt."

"Yeah so…."

"So I'll win first."

"Awe Harry, can't you let me win for once?"

"No…" Harry frowned. "I thought we agreed to play our hardest ahead of time."

"And so we have."

Harry suddenly spun around in the opposite direction.

"I won't let you trail me either. I'm going to do exactly what Wood said—not to be a gentlemen while in the air…"

Cho smiled, and decided to search for the Snitch herself, since Harry was right.

Harry flew off for a while, before stopping in mid air. Cho was not trailing him anymore.

_Good, now I can catch the Snitch and win this match. Then after this, as soon as this is over, I can return to my plans, plans that I have set for today._

After having his plans sorted out, Harry returned to the game he was in. He was going to catch the Snitch as always. Until, his goal, and Voldemort's goal was achieved, he could not become suspicious.

Harry flew around the stadium circling above everyone's head. Then he saw her. Cho had suddenly pelted toward the floor, near the Ravenclaw goalpost. He looked at where she was heading and saw the Snitch glistening about 10 feet below her. Harry spun around and pelted his Firebolt towards the Snitch. In a flash he gained on Cho. Now they were both flying shoulder to shoulder, the Snitch a few feet ahead of both of them.

It was then that Harry noticed the eerie silence. Everyone seemed to have held his or her breath waiting for either Harry or Cho to catch the Snitch. All eyes watched the two opponents, the two young Seekers, the two lovers as they raced to finish the match. Some had a feeling that Harry was going to let Cho catch the Snitch because of their affections and lovely relationship.

"Harry get out of the way! Let me win this for once," she said in her sweetest voice, which caused Harry's heart to melt. However he pulled himself together.

"No Cho, not this time I've got to win the match. I've got to enjoy this life while I still can, that is before I let him take everything that I love away from me." His voiced trailed off. Cho looked at him questioningly but did not ask since Harry did not seem to want to talk at the moment. He seemed to her like he was lost in another world, like he was lost on a far off land, a place where even she could not reach.

* * *

Dumbledore, McGonagall and Snape came back to the stadium all looking grave. They were highly disturbed by how and why they found Dumbledore, locked up, stunned, and still unconscious. Dumbledore had a reasonable guess at who it was but kept the secret to himself.

"Albus, what do we do, what do we do? How can that happened" McGonagall said, voice shaking. Dumbledore did not answer, fury was in his eyes. Snape however pointed up into the sky at Harry and Cho. The three looked up and watched.

* * *

Swish! A Buldger came out of nowhere. Harry ducked just in time as it swished above his head.

"Cho look out!" He screamed, but it was too late, it had hit her square on her stomach, sending her broom off course. Harry reached out his hand, the Snitch was already in his fingertips, and all he needed to do was grasp onto it.

"Harry…" he heard Cho muttered, sounded desperate. He turned around to see her grasping onto her broom with only five fingers. Harry gasped. The Buldger had caused an unexpected Cho to fall off leaving her to hang on to dear life. In that split second many thoughts flooded through Harry.

_I can win the match now, if I wanted to. Then Cho will have to pay the price. She would die if I do not save her now. _

Somehow, something held him back.

_Why am I hesitating? Why? Cho if she died, it would be just another account of death, another one of my victims. I killed tons of people already, what would I lose with the death of one more. Winning the match is important; I can always find another girlfriend, one who belongs on the Dark side._

Harry couldn't though. He tried to press down on the Snitch, but couldn't.

_I can't. I love Cho. I can't let her die, no matter what. No one can ever replace her. I love you Cho, I care for you, and so I will never harm you, I will never cause you danger. I'll protect you Cho._

"Harry…" Cho called out once more, just as her slippery fingers released the broom, causing her to fall. If she touched the ground that was more then 50 feet below her, she would be dead for sure.

* * *

Screams echoed through the stadium. No one blinked as they watched Cho fall.

"My God, Dumbledore, Miss. Chang is going to die if she lands at this speed…" Minerva pulled out her wand. Dumbledore however waived it away.

"Watch and see. If she falls another 20 feet or so, then I shall step in." He stared at Harry's emotionless face, hoping against hope that Voldemort had not change him that much, changed him enough to watch his only lover die before his eyes.

* * *

Harry stared at Cho's body as she fell.

"No, Cho! No!" He yelled, before taking his hands off the Snitch which he could have ended the match at anytime. Instead he used both hands to grip onto to his broom, chasing after Cho.

"Come on Firebolt, Come on, faster…."

He raced towards her, becoming closer and closer. They were nearly towards the ground about twenty feet away, when Harry gained onto Cho. Taking out his right hand, he reached for her, grasping her right hand. He tried to pull her up, instead, her weight seem to drag him down. They were 10 feet above ground and Harry could only grasp onto her other hand.

"Harry, just let me go. You can't fight against gravity. At this rate we will both die, release me and you'll have a chance to fly away."

"No, Cho, I won't let you die, no matter what I'll protect you, I won't let any harm come close to you." Harry managed to mutter. With that in mind, Harry suddenly threw himself off the Firebolt and beneath Cho, his arms wrapped around her protectively.

"Harry no!" Harry closed his eyes. He wanted to use his dark powers, but thought against it. Even in the mist of death, he would not betray his father, by surviving and then being questioned about his powers afterward. He would die for Voldemort's sake.

* * *

Voldemort felt restless. His bond between Harry weakened by the minute. Something was wrong—his Thomas was in danger. Concentrating with his powers, he tried to sense Harry and ask what was wrong.

_Thomas! Thomas! Thomas answer me! If you don't I'll come and get you._

Thomas's thoughts slowly crept into him.

_Father, this is for the best. If I die, it is because I love you, because I'm protecting you. I would not, I will betray you in anyways, I will not let you become in danger, by unwillingly revealing your secrets. This way, if I die, I take our secret to the grave. _

Understanding washed over Voldemort immediately. The fatherly affection in him seemed to arouse.

* * *

At that moment a sliver snake like mist formed a shield around Harry, right before he crashed onto the floor. When it disappeared, Harry was on the floor, his arms wrapped around Cho. On his neck was the necklace; the locket that Voldemort had given him on his 16th birthday.

* * *

Voldemort heaved a deep sigh as he felt Thomas's bond return. He had used most of his strength to form a shield around his son, to force power into the necklace that he had given him, one that would protect Thomas for life.

* * *

Harry slowly looked around. He was surprised that he was still alive. Looking down, he noticed the golden chained necklace that he wore as Thomas.

_How in the world did this show up. It shouldn't be here, I shouldn't be wearing this right now in front of everyone._

Then he notice that it was still glowing slightly silver, the snake in front seemed to be alive. Harry smiled at that. He suddenly understood that it was Voldemort who had kept him from death.

"Thank you father…." He muttered.

A hand shook his shoulder intently. He gazed up to see, Cho kneeling before him trying to attract attention. Standing next to her was Remus, Minerva, Serveus, and Albus. He held each person's gaze except for Dumbledore, who did not seem happy at all.

Harry leaped to his feet.

"Cho, Professors I'm alright." They stared at him intently.

"Potter that was magnificent, you managed to save Miss. Chang." McGonagall said, beaming down on him.

"Yes, very impressive." Snape added. He seemed very relieved that Harry was all right. Cho clung on to him, speechless, still lost in her thoughts of what had just happened. She was going to treasure this, burn her savior into her memory forever. Harry however looked at both Dumbledore and Lupin, both who seemed to be staring at his necklace. He looked down at it, then up at Lupin confirming if he was questioning it.

"Harry, where did you get that necklace? It has a very interesting design." Harry quickly pushed in under his robes.

"Oh, my father left this to me,"

Dumbledore's eyes widen.

"I do not recall James having one like that…."

Harry ignored that statement, finally looking into Dumbledore's eyes. Their eyes fixed for a moment before Harry crouched to the floor unable to stand.

"Harry!" Cho cried out. "What's wrong? Are you injured?"

"No…no…" he threw Dumbledore a look of utmost hatred, not surprised to see the headmaster slightly form a smile.

_Bastard! Laugh all you want now. We, father and I will win in the end. I made my first move, and now it is your turn. _

Harry released the invisibility spell which he had put on his victims.

A hand reach down to Harry. He looked up to see that it was Moony's. Harry took it and stood up. It was then that Cho realized the cold glares, between Harry and Dumbledore. She could not figure out why. She had always thought that Harry was Dumbledore's "favorite". Now, however, it seemed wrong. Dumbledore did not seem loving or caring instead slight fury could be seen. It was Lupin, though, Lupin who was the one that really and truly cared for Harry. She wondered what kind of relationship those two shared.

"Harry, I think this has been enough for one day." Lupin looked at Dumbledore., "Would you not agree that this Quidditch match should be reschedule to a later day perhaps as both Seekers seem to need time to recover."

"Ha! Remus, I think it was obvious that Potter did a noble act. The Snitch was already within his grasp. All he needed to do was grab onto it and the match would have been finished."

"But if he did that Miss. Chang would have died. He is one Mauarder, gets this from us. He's always loyal to friends, will never let anyone down just like James, Sirius, me…." Remus stated proudly.

"But not Peter…." Dumbledore suddenly spoke in. "And if Harry doesn't have anyone to lean on…"

"He's got me." Remus snapped.

"And if he turns against you?" Dumbledore challenged.

"He's not going to, Albus, we've been through this already, just to let you know, Harry's not that kind of person. I know him better then you do!"

"You do not!"

Lupin ignored this. "If I leave Harry's side now, what kind of fatherly figure am I then?"

"You aren't his father!"

"I'm as good as one. He's just lost Sirius Albus, he needs someone like me and if I leave him, then, then he would become like Peter. I won't let that happen!"

Dumbledore did not speak for a while. "You will regret this Remus. I'm telling you now, once the truth is out." Dumbledore through a dagger stare at Harry. "Then you will realize that I've tried to warn you."

"Warn me, warn me about what? That Harry is a danger, that he is a criminal undercover, that he committed crimes under my nose. Bullshit! Albus that is Bullshit! You expect me to believe that I'll wake up one day and find Harry on top of me, with his wand pointed between my eyes?"

He took Harry's hand.

"Beside's if Harry ever turns Dark, it will be because of you! You Albus, not me, not him, not Voldemort's fault, it will be yours. If you drive Harry too far, he'll end up dead like Sirius and James."

Dumbledore was speechless.

"From now on Albus, whether you like it or not, Harry is in my custody. I am the one responsible for him."

"You are irresponsible; you never stopped James or Sirius."

Lupin did not know how to reply. Instead he pulled Harry towards him.

"Come on, we are leaving Harry. We can go to my office and talk." Harry nodded, glared at Dumbledore for trying to reveal the truth once again, before heading off with Lupin.

* * *

"Harry! Professor!" The two stopped. Harry turned to see Cho running after them. Harry smiled.

"Cho…" he mumbled causing her to blush. He took her hand and pulled her close to him, embracing her. Remus smiled at the lovers.

"Harry, I'll leave you two alone, just remember to stop by at my office later." Harry nodded and watched Lupin scurry off.

Harry did not see Lupin disappear before he stood still at the end of the corridor, as if frozen stiff by what he saw. Harry and Cho, hurried over. Cho gasped. Harry looked at the two of them then acted the same way, stiff and frozen, shocked to the core.

There in front of the three of them were Colin and Dennis's dead bodies. Both faces seemed surprised. Lupin stepped closer, seeing blood writings on the way. He touched it and sighed.

"They've died, died at least two days ago." He mumbled letting his werewolf sense take over. Harry seemed surprised at how accurate Lupin's first assumption was. "They were surprised, unprepared. Their attacker or attackers seem to surprise them." Cho however clung onto Harry, as she read aloud the writing on the wall.

THE TrUtH haS BeEn ReVealed

VoLDemOrt'S heir, and Son has ReTuRnEd

DuMbLeDorE will FaLL

The ReiGn Of DaRkneSS has BeGun

On the bottom was a mark.

"The dark mark…" Cho said automatically.

"No, it's not…" Harry pointed out the Snakes at the side of the skull and the letters TJRR. "Wonder what that means…" All was silent.

"What seems to be the problem? Why are you three standing here, all stiff as if paralyzed by fear." Dumbledore's voice cut in. The three parted, to let Dumbledore, Snape and McGonagall through to see for themselves.

All at once Dumbledore had flame in his eyes. His anger was boiling mad. Without thinking he turned towards Harry and grabbed him up by his collar.

"What do you mean by this…Thomas! What the hell do you mean by these deaths! Do you really think you can scare me by this?" Dumbledore forced Harry to look into his eyes, causing Harry to crumple up into a ball. It seemed to be the only weapon that he had to control the boy. "You will answer me boy!"

At that moment Snape and McGonagall grabbed Dumbledore. Lupin pulled Harry away from the headmaster.

"Albus! This is Harry not Thomas, whoever that is! Harry has nothing to do with this! We were just with him less then five minutes ago!" McGonagall said. Dumbledore tried to shrug them off. "Harry is innocent! There is no way you can prove!"

"Innocent until proven guilty!" Lupin added. Dumbledore glared at them all. They all had no idea who they were dealing with.

"I'm innocent Professor. I swear I had nothing to do with this!" Harry told a down right lie, his smile turning into a slight smirk after seeing Dumbledore's defeated face.

_There is no way, no way, anyone will believe you. I'm the Golden Boy after all, the boy who defeated Voldemort. _

Dumbledore seemed to have noticed that he was being a little aggressive. He did not have support, and was on the down side of it all.

_Alright, Thomas, you win this round. I won't give up this easily. You will pay for what you did today._

Dumbledore stared at Harry for a while, before rereading the message. He did not speak for a while.

"It seems to me, Thomas Riddle has returned to Voldemort. He is his only son and heir." He paused for a while. "The second war has finally begun."


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter 10**

What happened after the Quidditch Match on Halloween spread like wildfire. Everybody had heard how the group found the deaths, the writings on the wall and how Dumbledore had lost control, accusing the least likeliest person there was, accusing Harry to be a murderer. More then half of the school believed in Dumbledore, especially since he had always been right. Still it was hard to make people believe that Dumbldore would think of anything of that sort to do with the Golden Boy.

Harry walked quickly towards Snape's office. He threw deadly glares at all the people who passed by him, whispering, talking and pointing.

"Scram all of you! I'm in a bloody foul mood now!" The people flinched, hurrying off, not daring to disappoint him. Ever since the deaths, which were more then 2 and a half months ago, people had been frightened of Harry, especially since they believed he was a murderer.

"I can't take this anymore! Being accused of a crime I didn't commit! Anymore of this, and I will become a murderer!" Harry had been enjoying this. He enjoyed the power he had over people.

Snape opened the office door.

"Come in Potter, I've been waiting." Harry nodded, entering the office, settleling himself comfortably on Snape's chair. Snape closed the door, placed on a silencing charm before turning towards Harry, bowing before him.

"What now Serveus? You do know that we should not be seeing each other so openly. May I remind you that I do know take Potions."

"I am aware of this." Snape said carefully. "But I just thought that young Master may be interested in some news."

"What sort?"

"Does young Master remember the fury Dumbldore had on Halloween?"

"Yes, how can I forget?"

"Well two days afterward, the Order had and emergency meeting…."

"Cruico!" Snape withered in pain. "Why wasn't I informed earlier?"

"Because….because…." no other words came out. Harry lifted the curse. "Because I, did not attend, I only heard Minerva and Molly talking about it yesterday, of course they don't know…"

Harry's brows rose.

"I think he's starting to become suspicious of me…. Albus"

"Is he?"

Snape nodded slowly. "I don't receive any information anymore or know about anything from the meetings. He's probably telling them to keep it away from me."

"This is definitely bad news, especially since there needs to be insider."

"I'm sorry young Master…."

Harry remained silent for a while.

"I'm highly disappointed….Cruico!!"

Snape cried out in pain, withering on the floor.

"Forgiveness young Master! I brought you the news, please forgive me…." He said between shouts of pain. Harry only laughed.

"You failed Snape, you failed an important task….lost trust…"

"I….I…"

"You will do better….?"

"Of course…."

Harry lifted the curse. "Very well, do not disappoint me again…." Snape bowed once more before leaving the classroom.

* * *

"Severus…" Snape stopped at being called by Dumbledore. Dumbledore studied his potions master from head to toe. "What happened to you?" he asked calmly. Snape looked at himself, he was indeed in horrible condition. 

"Nothing…nothing…." Snape said backing away.

"Did Thomas do this?" The Headmaster asked suddenly.

"Who?" Snape asked innocently. "Sorry Albus no clue who that is." Dumbledore frowned.

"You know perfectly well."

Snape chose to ignore this and turned to leave.

"You better reconsider your loyalties Serverus. You do remember why you became spy for the Order?" Snape stopped.

"As a matter of fact I do. It was based on trust Dumbledore. What happened then I cannot deny and will always be in your debt. However things have changed. You do not trust me."

"I do."

"Then why was I uninformed of that Order meeting?"

"Because…."

"You do not trust me; you think I'm going to let information slip."

Dumbledore was speechless. "Of course I trust you. The only reason you were not informed about the Order meeting was because I thought you were busy trying to find inside sources…."

Snape snorted. "Then I will be there the next meeting? I will be informed?" The headmaster nodded, before walking away.

* * *

There was a knock on the door. 

"Come in…" Remus said. The door opened and in walked Harry.

"Hello Harry"

"Hey Moony…"

"Nice of you to drop by..."

"Actually I came to ask you something."

"Sure…."

"Do you mind talking somewhere private?"

"It's ok, we can talk here…" Lupin placed a silencing charm.

"Well um…I heard that there was an Order meeting after what happened last Halloween…."

Lupin's eyebrow rose. "Yes. Why? You know you're too young to know."

Harry gave him pleading eyes.

"Come on, Ron has his parents in the Order, he probably knows everything."

"I'm sure Arthur and Molly wouldn't say anything at all."

"You know very well that if dad and Sirius were alive, they won't keep anything from me." Lupin gripped onto Harry's shoulder. "Come on Moony, please. Please. You know very well that I'm the one who deserves to be in the Order. I've been through so much more then most of the adults."

"True…"

"It's not fair! I'm always in the dark. Everything happens to me, but I'm always the last to find out, sometimes when it's too late."

Lupin sighed. "Very well, but promise never to reveal any of this outside…."

"I swear…" Harry simply replied.

"Dumbledore has simply revealed to us that the new mark, the one we saw on Halloween, according to unknown sources belongs to Thomas Jerry Reapt Riddle…."

"Who's that?"

"He is believed to be Voldemort's son and his heir…."

_So Dumbledore's told them…_

"Did he mention me, embarrass both of us…."

"Well he mentioned that more people should watch over you, but left out the part about himself losing control…."

"Duh! He's making me look bad."

"Why would he do that?"

"Well maybe because I screwed his life last semester. After Sirius died…." Harry took in a deep breath, "I almost killed. I swear, I could have killed him. I wanted so badly to kill him. At first I thought it was because Voldemort possessed me, but then now I realize that it was because Sirius died."

"Harry…you wanted to kill Dumbledore?" Lupin asked softly, slightly surprised and disturbed. Harry nodded.

"Not only that, I screwed up his office."

Lupin sighed. "So you think he's saying that just to make you look bad, just to blame you for everything that's gone wrong?"

"Yes…"

"I see, if that is true, then I won't let it happen…."

"Thanks Moony…."

"Anyways, what else did Dumbledore talk about?"

"He said he's got a secret weapon, he says he's going to use it against Voldemort, but mainly Thomas."

"A secret weapon" asked Harry.

"Yes, he mentioned it, but did not mention what it was. Said, that the weapon would come in handy especially since Thomas really cares about whatever it is."

"So Dumbledore's planning to take something away from this Thomas and is going to use it against him?"

Lupin nodded. "That is all that I know…."

"I see…."

"I'll tell you more when I do have more information."

Harry nodded.

"Thanks, at least now I feel better, at least I know that Dumbledore has a plan to stop Thomas and Voldemort." Harry stood to leave.

"Harry" The boy turned to look at the werewolf. "This is just between the two of us alright?" Harry nodded.

"Of course, I'm not that stupid to get us both in trouble…."

* * *

Dumbledore sat behind his desk. He was deep in thought. 

_How am I supposed to stop him? How am I supposed to stop Thomas from committing another murderer? What can I do? It is my duty to protect Hogwarts. My duty to fight against Voldemort, to fight against Harry._

It brought pain to the old man, the pain of having to fight Harry.

_True, Harry is Thomas and he is by far the next dark lord and most powerful wizard. However, it hurts to think I have failed; I had let Thomas walk the same path as his father. I had basically raised him, took him in since he was a small baby no older then 1. It hurts so much Harry, so much to see you turn dark._

"Professor…." Dumbledore pulled himself together surprised that Harry stood before him, surprised at how he had entered his office undetected.

"Harry, how did you enter? You've used dark magic again." he accused softly. Harry chuckled softly.

"You really think those small defensive spells are going to stop me?" Dumbledore shook his head.

"Not you or Tom, I doubt I can stop either of you now." his voice trailed off. "Yet those spells that I have put on are useful, it keeps unwanted visitors out so that I can have some solitude, solitude to think of happier times in the past." No one spoke for a while.

"Well, I suppose I'll come back later…."

"No!" Dumbledore replied immediately. "I don't mind having company; don't mind to be on speaking terms with you…."

"Then Professor…."

_Why does he call me Professor again? Isn't he used to calling me Albus? What is it that Harry really wants?_

Can I ask you a favor?" The headmaster seemed taken aback. "On Christmas…"

"What sort of favor?" "

Just yes or no, can you do me a favor, that is if I asked you a favor, would you do it?"

Dumbledore choose his words carefully.

"Depending on the favor, I will not step down from Hogwarts, I'll protect this place to the end, I will not cross over or doing anything of that sort."

Harry chuckled. "Alright…alright….Besides I didn't have anything of that sort in mind…."

The headmaster nodded slowly. "Very well…If it is to my ability…"

"Well you know um…Christmas, well Christmas is coming up…"

"and…"

"Well, I, well I was hoping if a ball could be set up."

"A Christmas Ball?"

"Yes…"

"Why…I thought you hate dancing, at least that is what Minerva told me. Thought you dreaded the Yule Ball…."

"Maybe, but can you please…please set one up…."

"You seem so eager…." He paused, and a thought crossed his mind. "Does this have anything to do with that fantastic seeker you saved the other day?"

Harry blushed. "Well Cho and I…Cho…Cho and I well we are…." Unable to put it into words, he nodded. To his surprise Dumbledore smiled.

"Very well Potter…" Harry's face darkened. "Very well Harry….very well…." Harry brightened up a bit.

"Thank you Professor…thank you…." With that Harry left the room, but before that, he heard the last line that Dumbledore spoke ever so softly.

"This is what sets you apart from Tom. It is what makes you strong, stronger then everyone else. Do me a favor Harry, don't put your love ones in danger for love is the strongest magic of all."

Dumbledore sat at his desk, his eyes followed Harry as he left. Suddenly, everything became clear. He had found his secret weapon, the weapon which would make Thomas think twice before trying to take over the wizarding world.

* * *

Harry, Ron and Hermione walked down to the Great Hall together. 

"Guess what Harry?"

"What?"

"Next week is the beginning of the holidays."

"Yup, and so most of the school in leaving, we'll get to roam the school…."

"But you reckon its safe to stay that is with that attack on Halloween, what happens if there is another one?"

"Nah! There isn't going to be one Hermione. Besides the mud-muggles should be the ones who are afraid, I mean they are Voldemort's favorite target."

Hermione raised an eyebrow.. Ron pulled his sleeve.

"Um…Hermione is a muggle…"

"Whoops, forgot that. Sorry Hermione!" Harry said, as he patted her back.

"Yeah…yeah…whatever…"

Dumbledore stood up. The Great Hall fell silent.

"I have a special announcement" he looked directly at Harry. "It was by request from a certain Gryffindor Seeker…." All eyes darted onto Harry. "Who wanted celebrate Christmas with a certain Ravenclaw seeker….."

_Thanks a lot Albus! Great, now the whole school knows because of you!_

Harry turned pink. He looked at Cho who was staring at him. She turned away once her eyes met. Everyone looked from Dumbledore to Cho and then to Harry, who slumped slightly in his chair. Dumbledore himself continued.

"This year the first annual Christmas Ball will take place." The Hall went into a great uproar. Chattering sprouted everywhere.

"It is a time to spend time with love ones and a golden opportunity to interact with other houses .Similarly to the Yule Ball, this is only restricted to six and seven years." There was some booing, among the lower years, but stopped when Dumbledore waived his hand and food appeared. "Thank you…" he sat down to eat.

When everyone was done, Harry walked up to Dumbledore.

"Why the hell did you do that?"

"Do what?"

"You know, announce it that way! Now the whole school knows."

A hand patted his shoulder.

"So you going out with Cho.?" Lupin teased.

"I…I ….I…You see Dumbledore, now everyone knows! Thanks a lot!"

"Well you know Harry, that is how Albus is, he even announced James and Lily's wed…." Dumbledore coughed loudly.

"Remus!" he said sharply. Lupin ignored him.

"He totally embarrassed them in front of the whole school." Harry only nodded.

"Harry!" He turned to see Cho standing at the door, still red from blushing.

"Excuse me Professors…." Harry said as he and Cho left, hand in hand.

The staff stared at them in awe.

"So Dumbledore, why did you try to cut me off?" Remus asked.

"Because sometimes it is best that the past is not mentioned. Sometimes the past can be misleading. It is best not to be mentioned at all." he replied simply. "Harry's past is quite unpleasant. So why not just forget about it?"

"Maybe he had a rough past but…."

"Remus, don't linger on the past. It cannot be changed. What we must focus on is the present, and the future…."


	11. An Early Christmas Present

**Chapter 11 An Early Christmas Present**

_"Wormtail…" _

_"Yes milord?" _

_"I have a task for you." Wormtail nodded. "I want you to go to the Department of Mysteries to fetch back my right hand man…" _

_"Who?"_

* * *

"Sirius!" Harry jolted up on his bed. He was breathing heavily.

_The dream, it was so real. Sirius…Sirius…It felt as though he was alive, as though Sirius was alive. Father answer me, is Sirius alive, is he you're right hand man?_

_"_Harry, you alright mate? You had a dream about Sirius again eh? Harry turn to see Ron who was also awake.

"Sorry Ron, sorry I woke you up. Yeah…its coming back, it's haunting me again…." He lied. His friend stared at him with concern eyes.

"It's been months Harry, I know it's hard, but you have to accept that he's dead."

"I know….I just can't help but think what it would be like if he was here now, you know what I mean?" Ron walked up and patted his back.

"If it helps we could go to Dumbledore tomorrow, tell him, its bothering you."

"Nah, its ok."

Ron looked on with concern. "You need to get sleep, peaceful ones, and to my knowledge you haven't been, you roll around all night."

"I have?"

"Yeah, since, I don't know…" he paused. "You think it's possible that You-Know-Who is torturing you, you know by constantly reminding you…."

Harry shrugged. There was silence.

"Ron, don't concern yourself about me. I'm fine you know." Harry got up off the bed. "I'll go check with Dumbledore right now."

"But it's the middle of the night, past 2am, you sure you can't wait?"

"Positive, I need to get sleep. You're right, Dumbledore can help…."

"I'll go with you then."

"Nah, just stay, I don't want to get you in to trouble."

"Like I care" grumbled Ron

"Course you do, I'll tell your mom and dad, they'll be furious."

"Like I can't tell on you."

"Who you going to tell it to? My parents are dead and so is Sirius."

"Lupin, Dumbledore, they're as good as your parents."

Harry scoffed. "Whatever…."

"Come on, just let me come with you."

"No Ron, you need your sleep…." Harry said with a tone of finality. Ron winced, hurt that his friend was being so cold.

"Alright, Harry you win." Ron crawled back onto his bed. "Just be careful."

* * *

Harry crept silently through the hallways. There were no wizards or ghosts in sight.

_Stupid, Ron! You really think I'm going to tell Dumbledore to get a sleeping potion. He is my enemy! Why in the world would I run into my enemies trap?_

He stopped in front of Moaning Myrtle's restroom. Making as little sound as possible, he opened the door and slipped inside.

* * *

Ron waited at least 10 minutes before slipping out of bed. Carefully he took out Harry's invisibility cloak and map.

_Well, I suppose I should check up on him. He is acting all weird and odd. Not only that, Harry seems to be keeping something a secret, something huge._

Walking slowly, he followed Harry's dot that was located on the map.

_Odd, why did he stop in front of Moaning Myrtle's restroom. There's nothing there but the Chamber of Secrets…_

He glanced at the map at the place where the Chamber of Secret was located on.

_Hmm…he must have added that on, the map's so complete now, it even has places that only I could have imagine existed._

He scanned for any movement inside the chamber and found seven black dots, which were labeled Malfoy, Lestrange Avery, Nott, Macair, Nagini and Sirius Black. The dot Harry Potter showed that it was heading directly towards them.

_What? Sirius' here? Alive?_

* * *

Harry felt an odd sensation as if he was being followed. Instantly he knew who it was.

_That's right Ron, follow me, follow me to your death…_

Harry laughed silently.

/Open/ he hissed towards the sink. Standing back, he watched as the sink disappeared. He jumped in, and stood to the side. He waited for a while, giving Ron enough time to follow him.

/Close/ he whispered before heading down the long pathway.

Surprise took over Harry as he saw the Death Eaters gathered at the end. He had only expected to find Nagini, to send her on a task to find his father who would answer his questions.

Nagini, slithered up to Harry who coiled herself in front of him. Harry patted it.

/Didn't expect you young master./

/Hehe, didn't think I'll come either. He paused. There's another wizard who followed me here, I'm sure he's here somewhere, sniff him out, but don't reveal him just yet…make sure he doesn't leave./

/Uninvited guests?/

Harry nodded.

/Ok, I'll find him./ Nagini slithered away to search out the uninvited visitor.

The Death Eaters didn't seem to know what to do. They watched silently as Harry spoke with the snake, not understanding at all. Finally Harry looked up at them. Lucius stepped forward and bowed low.

"Young Master," he mumbled. Harry nodded, and he got up. The others looked at him, then at Harry.

"Potter, That little boy's got guts to show up here." Bellatrix said in her girly voice.

"Cruico!" Harry said, not bothering to pull out his wand. Bellatrix fell to the floor, withering in pain. Harry immediately placed a silencing charm.

"How's that for a change, thought you said I couldn't use one Lestrang? You killed Black and I'll kill you for it. Never again mock me, you understand. Potter's dead!"

Lestrange could do nothing but scream in pain. The others looked at Harry, then at their fellow Death Eater.

"Lucius aren't you going to stop that kid, it's getting out of hand…." One of the Death Eaters spoke. Malfoy only smirked.

"Serves her right. Why step in?"

"You're afraid of Potter?"

"Cruico!" Nott fell to the floor. "I thought I said never mention Potter."

Malfoy only smiled. "Young Master please forgive them, it is not their fault, after all besides, me, Snape, and Master, everyone knows you….as Harry."

"Draco knows, and he's been such a helpful kid."

"Glad to hear that, after all, a Malfoy's only purpose is to serve Master."

Harry smiled, before truing towards the other death eaters and releasing the curse.

* * *

Ron, watched with sweat forming throughout his body. He knew that something was indeed wrong.

_Why won't he admit he's Harry Potter? Has Harry betrayed us, is he a Death Eater? Why does, Malfoy call him young Master. Could he be second to You-Know-Who?_

His questions were immediately answered. He watched wide-eyed as Harry's appearance dramatically changed before him. The Death Eaters immediately scrambled onto their knees.

"Now you know. I am Thomas J. R. Riddle, I am Voldemort's son." Ron nearly fainted with that knowledge. He watched as Thomas changed back to Harry.

* * *

"Please forgive me, young Master, I didn't know." Bellatrix crawled up to Harry who laughed coldly.

"Now tell, why are you all here?" They exchanged glances.

"Master wanted us to check on you and give you an early Christmas present." Lucius began.

"Christmas present?"

"Yes, and he's sure you'll be pleased."

"Where is it?"

"Close your eyes and open them when I say so." Malfoy spoke quietly. Harry nodded and did as he was told. "Now open your eyes slowly." Harry did so, and gave a huge squeal of happiness.

"Harry…." The man whispered.

"Sirius…." He threw his arms around the neck of his godfather. "You're alive, Sirius, alive!"

"Yup, Harry, I'm alive, Thomas, alive and healthy. Bella, my cousin faked my death." Harry staggered back.

"How did you know I was Thomas?"

"Harry, I guess I haven't been too honest with you."

"You weren't?"

"Nope…you see, I was placed in Azkaban for a reason. The Daily Prophet's correct, the Ministry of Magic has a good reason for wanting me dead, you see, it's true, I am Voldemort's right hand man, I always was…."

"But you don't have the Dark Mark."

"No, I don't, I am much more then a Death Eater. I was second in command to Voldemort."

"But why not now?" Harry frowned.

Sirius smiled. "Cause you are." He shuffled Harry's hair. They exchanged another hug.

"I'm so glad you're alive, I always wondered why father said he liked you."

"He does, doesn't he? Voldemort's a good man, that is underneath all that other junk.

"Yup." Harry agreed whole heartedly. Finally the two pulled apart.

Malfoy took the chance to speak. "Young Master, it's getting late, we should be leaving for the others are going to wake up soon and you need to get to bed and act as though nothing has happened."

Harry nodded in agreement.

"Sirius are you going?"

"I must, I can't stay here now, not with Dumbledore stalking the place."

"That Dumbledore, he's tearing everything I love apart! He took you away from me and I have a feeling he's going to take more then that."

"Don't worry, he's nothing. I promise once he's gone, we'll be together."

"You promise."

"Yeah and in the mean time use that mirror I gave you."

"Kind of broke it."

"You could have used it for Remus, he has one."

"Yeah, Remus, poor guy, what would he think if he found out? I don't want to hurt him."

"Maybe it'll work out, he's a very understanding guy."

"Come on, Black, we have to go." A Death Eater interrupted.

"Very well, I'll see you later."

Harry nodded. He watched as Nott took out a Portkey. "Wait…"

"Yes?"

Harry walked up to the wall where Nagini was huddled at. With a quick movement of his hand, Harry held an invisibility cloak. Standing there before him was Ron, huddled close to the wall and whimpering.

"Take him, he knows too much."

"Harry I…."

"Not another word Weasley, I'm handing you over to Voldemort, I think he'll have plans for you."

"You….Harrry…you…traitor!" was all he could manage to speak.

"Hey you followed me, I told you not to, now you will pay the price. Take him…." Avery and Nott did so. "And oh, remember to thank father for me, you know for my Christmas present."

"You…you I should have never trusted you Harry, you Paraselmouth! You snake!" was what Ron said before he and the others disappeared.


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

Harry watched the group disappear. He fumbled the invisibility cloak in his hand.

_There, that takes care of Ron. All I need now is a cover up. Dumbledore's going to be furious once he figures it out. Or perhaps I should make it clear to him that I'm not to be messed around with. This was my third move, why don't I announce it? See, and wait to find out his move…after all, he didn't do anything the past two times…he'll regret it if he doesn't do anything now. _

He bided farewell to Nagini, and headed up to the chamber's entrance, his hand grasping on to his invisibility cloak.

* * *

Hermoine twisted and turned on her bed. Somehow, she couldn't sleep. She was restless. Her instinct told her that something dreadful was about to happen.

"Harry…Ron…Harry….Ron…no ….no….not Ron…." She mumbled in her sleep. "Not…Ron…." Finally her eyes snapped open and she sat up, panting hard.

"Ron….Ron…." Feeling uncomfortable, she decided to check up on her two best friends.

What she saw surprised her. Both Harry's and Ron's beds were empty.

"Damn it! Where the hell did those two go?" She cursed under her breath. Trying to calm herself, she decided to wake the rest of the boys.

"Is it morning already?" Neville murmured

"No Neville."

"Then why bother….'Mione" Dean jumped out of bed. "Hermione….what….what…the hell are you doing here? It's the middle of the night!"

"Sorry guys, don't mean to bother you but do you know where Ron and Harry is?"

"They're in bed of course…." Neville's voice trailed off as they saw the two empty beds. "Or out night wondering."

"No, that can't be."

"Why not?"

"Cause…cause….well I…I…placed a charm to make sure their night wonderings stopped. You know, to break their habit."

"Really?"

"You should have told us." Dean said.

Seamus's face darkened. "You think something might have happened to them?"

"I don't know but I think so. I had a restless sleep and when I woke up I was muttering Ron's name really badly…"

Dean rolled his eyes. "That's because you're his girlfriend. It makes perfect sense." Hermione blushed.

"So are you going to help me look for them or not?"

"Nah…"

"Then I'll find McGonagall."

"And get them both in trouble? Some friend you are..."

"Then you'll help?" The boys exchanged glances.

"Yeah sure…" Neville said quietly.

"As long as we don't bump into Snape." Hermione patted his shoulder.

"That's what being in Gryffindor's all about, to be brave and loyal to friends." The boys nodded and followed Hermione quietly into the Common Room.

* * *

Harry walked silently through the hallways, taking the hidden passageways that led to the main hall which was where he decided to place his mark and message to Dumbledore.

* * *

Hermione, Dean, Seamus, and Neville stalked the passages and corridors of Hogwarts, trying to look for any sign of Harry or Ron. They were very unsuccessful. They were so into it that none of them realized that someone else was following them or the fact that they had walked straight into three professors without even noticing it.

"Granger! Longbottom! Thomas! Finnigan 200 points from Gryffindor for night wonderings!" Snape barked at them, and he was surprised to see them jump up at his words. "Plus 2 weeks detention!" He snarled.

Hermione looked up as did the rest of them, horrified to be caught by Snape, McGonagall and Dumbledore.

"I…I…I…We…we…" Neville began to explain, but shrunk at the face that Snape gave him. Dean opened his mouth and then closed it, unable to make a sound.

"I'm ashamed! All of you, and from my house! Ms. Granger, I thought you would have had some sense."

"But Professors… I…we…"

"We were just trying to find Harry and Ron" Seamus said receiving nasty looks from his peers.

"Harry and Ron? You mean they're also out night wondering?" McGonagall questioned. She looked as though she was going to faint. Dumbledore's face darkened at the mention of Harry being out of bed at night especially since that meant he was most likely up to no good. Snape's face paled slightly as questions of his young Master's whereabouts' rushed though him.

_Potter! He's got to learn! Sure, I will cover for him. That is my duty. Yet how many times can I do so? How many times will I be around to save his neck? Oh well, I'll deal with him later. First I have to make up excuses to cover up whatever young Master is up to. I have to pull him out of this._

Snape cleared his throat, and they all looked at him, a slick smile evident on the potion master's face. Snape chuckled. "Potter's with me. In fact he's in my office right now."

"After hours?" Dumbledore raised an eyebrow.

"Yes after hours Albus. If you don't believe me, you can come to my office and check."

"And why would he be there?" McGonagall asked.

"Yes. Why would he?" the headmaster questioned again.

Snape thought fast. "Re… remedial potions…" he sneered the word into the headmaster's face. "I think that was your idea, not mine."

The headmaster lowered his head slightly, as if to apologize. "Yes…Remedial Potions." Dumbledore mumbled it more to himself then the others. "Yes…I remember…well I think its time that I checked on his progress."

"Why not tomorrow?"

"Is there a problem today? He is in your office is he not?"

"Wh….why yes…yes of course he is….feel free to check up on him…" Snape's voice faltered as if he was unsure of his own statement.

"Then I will .thank you very much…" Dumbledore began to walk towards Snape's office. Snape hurried after him. McGonagall watched the two leave.

Finally she spoke. "Can I trust you four to head back to your dormitories?"

"Yes…." They replied while looking at the floor. McGonagall glared at all of them for a while.

"Very well back to the dorms, I will be up there later to check …" She trailed off with a hint of an unspoken threat.

"Yes…."

After she had watch them turn around the corner, she quickened her pace to catch up with the other two Professors.

Out of the shadows, a 5th year watched. Her heart pounded fiercely. She knew what she must do. She just hopped she could get to him before the Professor's did…

* * *

The peace at Riddle mansion was disturbed by the faint popping sound of a group of wizards.

"Black! I can't believe you! You traitor! I trusted you!" Ron shouted as he was brought to face Voldemort by Sirius and Malfoy.

"Quiet Weasley! Show some respect to Voldemort." Sirius spoke the Dark Lord's name, and Ron was momentarily distracted by it. He pondered how it was possible that Black could be so disrespectful to his Master while the Master seemed unfazed and lenient to Black, which Voldemort obviously was because Black hadn't been hexed. Taking this chance, the two followers of the Dark Arts threw the boy in front of their Master, before bowing towards him.

"Weasley….." Voldemort spoke the name softly.

Ron gritted his teeth. "Wha….What do you wish of me….."

Voldemort pointed his wand at the boy and murmured "Crucio!" Ron screamed as he withered in pain.

"Manners Weasley. You will learn some of that before I kill you. You will not talk unless addressed to, and I will be the one asking the questions." He lifted the spell. "Do you understand?"

Ron remained silent, as tears swelled in his eyes.

"Now give me the Map." The Dark Lord spoke ever so quietly.

"Wha…What map…" Ron said, though he knew exactly which one the man meant.

"Do…not tell lies…I know the truth….and I can sense the lies…now give me the map, otherwise you'll be the first Weasley to die…." Voldemort hissed, drawing out the 's' sounds.

Ron laughed. "Like that matters, I think, no…I'm sure I'll die either way so why hand it over? Besides if you do have Potter and Black, why do you still need a map? Even a blind man can navigate through Hogwarts without a walking stick!"

The Dark Lord's face contracted. "Have it your way then….Avada..Keda…."

"No wait…Master…wait…." Sirius blurted out daring to interrupt when the Dark Lord was in the midst of killing another. Again Ron wondered why Black wasn't dead yet. His thoughts disappeared when Voldemort turned his wand on Black, and Ron's hopes lifted as he thought that justice would be partially served if Voldemort punished his servant for the man's insolence. However, his hope disappeared when Voldemort chose to speak to Black instead of cursing him.

"Now Black, you know your place, don't you dare step out of line." He paused, and then in a softer voice the Dark Lord said "Don't tell me you've grown too attached to this boy."

"Of course not milord." Again Black bowed deeply towards Voldemort.

"Then explain yourself…"

Sirius glanced at his Master, then at Ron. "It's just that it was Thomas's first prey. I think it'll be ideal for him to settle his affairs with this boy. After all doesn't it always cause more pain to be tortured and killed by a close one—a family member or friend—more then an enemy?"

Ron couldn't believe his ears. He suddenly felt a sense of gratitude towards Black flood into him and it took all his might not to run up to Sirius and hug the man for pleading for his life despite the man being Dark. To Ron the plea and success of it meant everything because as long as he wasn't dead, there was a chance to remain alive. Ron held his breath as he waited for the decision.

Voldemort lowered his wand, and Sirius gave a sigh with relief, grateful that he once again slipped passed without being punished. A satisfied smirk spread across Voldemort's face.

"Yes…..yes…it does, does it not? Yes.. I have to agree with you…" Voldemort turned to Malfoy. "Take him away…"

"Yes…milord…."

As Malfoy dragged Ron away, the boy turned back to look at Sirius, trying to give him some sign that despite everything, he was grateful that Sirius had saved his life, however temporary it might be. To Ron's disappointment, the face of his savor was one of cold stone, emotionless and untouched by the good deed.

After Malfoy and Weasley disappeared, a few minutes passed in silence. At last Voldemort turned back to his right hand man.

"Black….Black….Black……these small bits of tactics you got there never seem to cease do they? That darkness within you only seems to grow quite like your popularity among my Death Eaters."

"Master, I…."

Voldemort waived off the explanation. "Besides that I remember a rally, during my absence that you were to become the new leader, the next Dark Lord…."

"Master let me explain, I've never dreamt of being my own leader. I will never betray you. You know that…."

"Yes I do and for that I am grateful."

"I know perfectly well where my loyalties lie. My life belongs to you, please…please do not let those rumors bother you."

Voldemort went up and patted Sirius's shoulder. "You have Lord Voldemort's trust…and gratitude. You have done well and have proven yourself countless times, and even now…your loyalty has never wavered." He leaned closer to Black. "However do watch your step. You may be ranked above everyone else, but still you are always at me and my son—your godson's—disposal. Do watch your step and do not butt into my affairs and my decisions. You know perfectly well that it would be a waste to dispose of such a highly dark, intellectual, and loyal person like yourself. Let me warn you now…"

"Yes…my lord…I understand. I will not jeopardize my rights."

"Good…."

* * *

Harry waived his wand. His mark appeared at the end of the message. Standing back, he admired his work.

"So you've disposed of my brother.." A voice spoke from behind him.

"Not yet, I only handed him to Voldemort…." Harry turned and pointed his wand at the chest of Ginny. "Yes, Ginny, that's right, I've handed your brother Ron to Voldemort and you won't be able to stop me from killing you."

Ginny only smiled, which surprised Harry. Slowly and carefully she pulled up both her sleeves. Harry's eyes widen at what he saw burned on both of her forearms.

"Disappointed Harry?"

"No, just surprised. Didn't think you'll turn dark…." Harry lowered his wand so that it pointed to the floor.

"How long ago?"

"The summer after my second year, after I met Tom…."

"That long eh….."

"Yes" She stared intently at Harry. "You?"

Harry chuckled. "Just this summer. Do you know who Thomas is?"

"Yeah...Master's son…."

"Yeah...and well I'm Thomas….."

Ginny did not seem surprised. "It figures. After all you and Tom are so similar."

"Yes, so I've heard…" Harry's voice trailed off as he heard footsteps approach.

"Shoot Harry! They're coming!"

"Who?"

"Dumbledore, Snape and McGonagall. Damn, I forgot about them."

"Why are they here?"

"Well Hermione, Dean, Neville and Seamus found out you and Ron was missing so they came out to look and got caught by the professors. They told about you guys being missing and well Snape made up a story to save you from trouble…."

"Did he?"

"Yes, but you got to go Harrry. Go to Snape's office and stay there. Please go now."

"Why? What about you?"

"Just go! Hurry Harry. I'll be fine."

Harry glanced back at Ginny before dodging down the hallways to Snape's office.

* * *

The three professors headed silently towards Snape's office, all deep in their own thoughts. No one talked to another. Snape's worries of Potter grew as time passed by hoping that somehow, somehow all will be well and that Harry would indeed drop by his office. Dumbledore was concerned of Harry's night wonderings. He knew perfectly well that wherever he was, he would be safe and sound. Who he was really worried about was Ron and his safety. McGonagall was still recovering from shock that Harry still would go night wondering…even after all the dangers he had gone through.

"Ginny! Dear god! You're also out of bed!" McGonagall nearly dropped to the floor, but was caught by Dumbledore. Ginny spun around quickly, apparently startled by her sharp voice. Quickly and clumsily she rolled down her sleeves, but still not quick enough for Snape to notice the outer rim of the Dark Mark engraved on her. Snape looked at her, then at her forearm and finally at the place of his own mark. Ginny followed his eyes, and then nodded slightly. Snape sighed. He glanced sideways at the headmaster and deputy headmistress, who luckily did not notice them, since their eyes were set on the wall which once again had a message on it.

Weasley is mine

Like the first message, on the very bottom was Thomas's mark. Dumbledore walked up to the wall and touched it.

"An innocent life has been once again taken. Thomas, you will pay!" He spurred around suddenly and grabbed Ginny's right forearm surprising them all. "Ginny Weasley, why am I not surprised to find you here?"

Ginny jerked her arm away. "I don't understand Professor," she said in an innocent voice. Dumbledore glared at her.

"Did you have anything to do with this? Do you know who did it?"

"Thomas of course, who else could it be? After all it is signed by his mark." She backed up until her back hit Snape. "I have nothing to do with this. I swear…"

"Oh really? If that is true then do you mind if you rolled up both your sleeves?"

Ginny opened her mouth and then closed it.

"I think that is unnecessarily. May I ask why you wish to do that?" Snape put a hand on Ginny's shoulder.

"You know perfectly well why Severus. That is where the Dark Mark is located at is it not?"

"Oh…hold it right there Albus, are you accusing Ginny of being a Death Eater?" McGonagall put in.

"Yes, Professor, are you accusing me of being a Death Eater?"

"If you are not and are as you claim, innocent, then why can't you roll up your sleeves and prove it to us all?" Dumbledore paused. "Of course I can always blame it on Thomas, except it makes no sense that he himself would show up, take Ron and not silence the rest. That is an easy mistake one that a Dark Lord cannot afford."

Ginny gritted her teeth.

"And so that leads me to draw the conclusion that someone else was sent for the job, and you Ginny just so happens to be here, right in front of a message with no sense of fear. I have my own suspicions, after all you did open the Chamber of Secrets in your second year."

"Albus! We had come to a conclusion that she was possessed!" McGonagall snapped.

"Perhaps, perhaps now she is currently being possessed or is doing this out of her own free will."

McGonagall did not know what to say. All she did was look at Ginny, whose face suddenly contorted and a big smile was spread across it. Ginny laughed hard, a cold laugh. When it subsided, her wand was pulled out in front of her.

"Very logically indeed, Dumbledore. Alright you win, I was the one who put up the message. I was the one who took my brother. Thomas and Voldemort has nothing to do with this, it was suppose to be a surprise so if you are going to convict anybody its going to be me."

Fire sprouted within Dumbledore. "Your own brother!" Ginny only smiled. Dumbledore too pulled out his wand. Ginny felt something press against her back. Snape pretended to bend over and secure Ginny to him so that Dumbledore could attack.

As his head bent close to her ear, he whispered, "Portkey, you owe me." Then he rose once more pressed a wand behind Ginny's back. "If you move, I'll kill you" he said simply.

Ginny laughed still. "You won't catch me alive Dumbledore…" She touched the Portkey and with a pop disappeared.

* * *

Harry slammed open Snape's door and shuffled in. He did not know why he was here. All he knew was that it made sense. He could have Snape make up a story to cover up for him..

Bang! The door opened again. A furious looking Dumbledore, along with a dazed McGonagall and a relived Snape came sweeping in.

"You see Albus, I was right all along, Potter's right here. He's been here all night, have you not Potter?" Harry nodded aware that somehow Snape how told them that he was here. Dumbledore only nodded as he glared at Harry with utmost loath.

"Yes indeed, one less to worry about." He turned to leave. "Oh Harry, do take care of yourself, we don't want you to end up like Ron or Ginny." Harry remained silent. Without another word he left the room. McGonagall glanced at the two, shook her head and trailed off behind the headmaster. Snape went up closed the door, and whispered the silencing charm.

"Young Master explain yourself." Snape spoke matter-of-factly without preamble. "You took Ron, didn't you? Do you have any idea how many people got involved?"

"Yes, I did take Ron." For the time being, Harry ignored Snape's tone. It had already been a long night and he didn't feel like making it longer by punishing Snape for formalities. Instead he questioned the other. "You saw the message?"

"Yes, the three of us did."

"Didn't expect anyone to find out this early."

"No but we did. Apparently you and Ron were not the only night wanderers. Granger and your whole dormitory went out looking for the two of you. Miss Weaasley was also out of bed though she wasn't with that group."

"Ginny, where is she? Was she caught?"

"No, I got her out of it. I sent her away by Portkey."

"What? Why?"

"You jeopardize her whole education. She will never return to Hogwarts, or live a life with a clean name—again" Snape replied his voice slightly betraying his indifference that a student would never return to Hogwarts.

"Explain Snape."

"Ginny took responsibility of what happened tonight."

"She did? She did that for me?" There was regret in Harry's voice. "But you said you got her away."

"Yes through Portkey."

"Good, you've done well. So where did you send her?"

"Back to Master."

Harry nodded.

"Thank you Snape. You've done well tonight."

Snape shook his head.

"No, .it is my responsibility to look out for you, no matter what and I will do what Ginny did tonight, that is if it is ever required."

Harry patted his Professor's back.

"I'm grateful."

"Just promise me one thing young Master."

"What?"

"Next time you will have it all planned out won't you? Next time we the Death Eaters will be informed won't we?"

"Why…no need…"

"Yes there is. The same mistake cannot happen again. Of course we can all come up with last minute things to cover up for you, but sometimes the price for it is just too much .Think, if Ginny wasn't force to reveal herself then you'll have another servant, another spy at your side without the whole wizardry world out trying to capture her—the same situation as Black is in…." he stopped as he realized he mentioned Black. "I'm sorry, I shouldn't have said that. I shouldn't have mentioned Black."

"It's OK. Sirius isn't gone yet and yes I realized the consequence. Yes I promise you that if at all possible, I won't risk losing a faithful servant or a love one."


	13. The Light Lord and the Life Feeders

**Chapter 13 The Light Lord and The Life Feeders**

"Lemon drop?" Dumbledore asked the headmistress. Minerva shook her head.

"Dumbledore! Albus! How the hell can you remain so calm! Ronald Weasley was just taken by You-Know-Who! Not only that but the fact that, that Ginny, Ginny is a…" She could not bare to say those words out loud.

"A Death Eater" came the grave reply.

McGonagall only nodded. "Yes! How can you just sit here and not take action. Who knows what You-Know-Who or Thomas might do to him."

"I will take action when it is necessary. For now just calm down a bit."

"Calm down? Calm down? How can I? Ronald, one of my pupils is in mortal danger. I feel that I have a responsibility for him. What would Molly and Arthur say when we tell them?"

"They probably already know."

"Already know?"

The headmaster nodded.

"How can they?" McGonagall was cut off when the door to the headmaster's office burst open. The people who entered were all looking grave, pale and most of all stricken with terror.

"Molly, please, I'm sure they're alright." Arthur held onto his wife's shaking body. "They're probably in the dorms, the clocks probably mistaken."

"I told you! Voldemort's got Ronald! Even the clock says so. We need CONSTANT VIGILANCE! You put your guard down then you get attack!" Mad-Eye's magical eye was spinning rapidly in the socket, staring at the form of a clock, or what was left of a clock, which he held in his hands. His normal eye was fixed directly at Dumbledore.

"Thank you Alastor, yes we shall keep that in mind." As Dumbledore spoke, his eyes moved from Moody to the clock and then back at him. Without saying another word, his eyes went from one person to the next.

"Severus did you leave Potter?"

"I sent him back to his dorm sir. Followed him until he was in bed." Dumbledore nodded and proceeded to the man next to him, his eyes darkening a bit.

"Severus, did you make the Potion for him? He's paler then usual, paler and more ash stricken then anyone else here. The wolfishness, the beast is starting to show."

Snape only nodded. Lupin's eyes narrowed.

"As a matter of fact, Severus has been kindly making the Wolfsbane. I might be 'wolfish, beast like' as you have put it because the full moon's approaching soon—tomorrow night, Christmas to be exact." The werewolf's reply matched the coldness in the headmaster's voice. The people looked between them, trying to distinguish which face held the most hatred. Dumbledore had deliberately insulted Lupin, and the werewolf had fired back at him.

"Ah, no wonder, the beast is really beginning to show. You sure you're safe?"

"Safe? I assure you, I am safe to anyone who is wise enough to not anger me. That 'beast' inside can really harm you." Lupin snapped his jaw. Dumbledore backed up a bit.

"Is that a threat?" The headmaster asked softly. Lupin stepped up and leaned closer to the older man. At that moment a pair of hands reached up and grabbed Lupin from behind.

"Easy Remus, easy…" The Potion master's voice was soft. "We're not here to argue over something like this. We're here because Ronald Weasley is in mortal danger." Lupin glared at Dumbledore before retreating to a respectable distance.

"Yes Weasley's…" McGonagall began. Once more she launched into a fit about sitting and waiting. Lupin tried to hold his temper but it burst out of control.

"Why is there such a big fuss over Weasley. The boy's supposedly Harry's sidekick."

"He's our son!" Arthur snapped back.

"Then what is Harry to you? Some kind of battle shield?"

Mad-Eye looked skeptically at Lupin. "Who said he was a battle shield?"

"Yes, who indeed?" Dumbledore's voice came out mockingly.

"You!" Lupin held up a fist. "I've…I've never seen any of you guys panic for Harry's sake, never seen you guys care for him." Complete silence overtook the room.

Finally Molly spoke, "He's as good as our son, Remus, He's like another son to me. He's got no one left, first his parents and now Sirius. It's just, just that Ron…"

"That's absolutely correct. The only reason Harry's life is miserable is because he's got no one left. You guys really think you understand Harry, you think you know him. You don't, I'm telling you, you don't know him. You don't know Harry. He's been strong for all of you, he's been fighting for our sake and just to think that no one cares for him, no one besides me really cares for him!"

"Remus!" The werewolf ignored whoever that had spoken to him. "Remus John Lupin!"

"What Snivellus?" Lupin snapped back using the insult that his friends used while he tried to avoid using.

Snape went slightly red.

Enough! Enough between you and Dumbledore. We all agree that Potter's life is more important than Ron." He received cold glares from Arthur and Molly. "We agree that Harry isn't alone in his battles between The Dark Lord…" There were scatter nods. "However he's not really in danger at the moment. Weasley is…"

"Exactly, thank you Severus. Now Remus, if the wolf hasn't completely taken over yet then may I remind you that it is human nature to look out for all who are in need and not just Harry." The headmaster had put a lot of emphases in the word 'wolf'. Lupin remained silent, trying as best as he could to control his temper, to remain as 'human' as possible by not showing his weakness in front of the others, showing the 'wolfishness' which resided in him, the darker side of him.

"Where is Ron and Ginny?" Arthur took the chance to speak.

"Mortal danger!" Mad-Eye repeated for the thousandth time.

"Yes…but where exactly…"

The ex-auror shrugs. Everyone looked at Snape for a reply.

"He's probably with the Dark Lord."

"That's very helpful," McGonagall said in a mocking voice. "We all know that…"

Snape smiled weakly.

"Where exactly is 'with the Dark Lord'?" asked another Order member.

"I don not know. Even we the Deatheaters do not know his true whereabouts. That's one reason why it's hard for the Light to locate the Dark Lord. Even we his supporters do not know where he resides in." The auror studied Snape with his magical eye. Dumbledore too looked suspiciously at him, but only nodded at his reply, not missing certain words that were used.

"In this case, we should work out with what we know. We must make our move wisely. The enemy has already attacked four times…" All faces looked up at that.

"Forth…it's only trice..." The other members nodded at Molly's words. "Yes, the capture of Ron is only the third move of the enemy."

They gave the headmaster confused looks, waiting for a decent explanation.

"Yes, if you count it correctly, it is Voldemort's fourth move." They still wore a confused look. "The first move was this summer when Voldemort finally reclaimed his son, Thomas."

There were some nods.

"The second is the attack on Azakban during the summer."

"Yes, that too…" Mad-Eye nodded as if recalling the event. "It was mostly covered up and if I remember correctly, that was the first time that the 2nd Dark Mark appeared."

"Thomas's mark," Snape said immediately, as if not wanting anyone to be unable to distinguish the two marks.

"The next was the deaths of the Creevey brothers and now Ron…"

"What about Ginny?" Arthur asked anxiously.

"We'll get to her later." Dumbledore paused leaving a bit of ice in his voice.

"Can anyone tell me anything, anything else that might help us prepare."

"Well they all were marked by Thomas's mark." The ex-auror said.

"Yup…"

"It wasn't done by the Dark Lord himself. It was not planed by him. It is possible that Thomas is trying to become the next Dark Lord, the most feared Dark Wizard of the world." They nodded to what Snape had said.

"How about attack strategies? Are there any patterns?"

"Well there's always the Mark left behind," again Molly pointed out the obvious.

"They always kill and destroy…" Again another obvious answer.

"Yes. Anything else? Anything else that you all might have noticed?" The Order members shook their heads.

"How about you Dumbledore, I'll like to see your take on this." Snape asked.

"I can not quite put a finger on all of this, there seems to be no pattern, the subjects are randomly picked, both Halfbloods and Wizards a like."

"There's one thing though, if you haven't notice, the subjects all come from my house…Gryffindor! They all seemed to be Harry's friends. So what I think is that Thomas wants to attack the closest people to Harry and then destroy him."

"Plausible explanation..We shall look into this later…"

"Meanwhile, the best we can do is to keep the remainder of us in a safe environment."

"Wards?" suggested Arthur.

"No! That doesn't stop any Dark Wizard. It's useless Arthur, they know too much Dark Arts."

"Then what do you suggest Mad-Eye, you seem to be the expert…"

"Me? That would be Remus over there wouldn't it, he is the Defense against the Dark Arts professor." Both Mad-Eye's magical and normal eye were fixed on the werewolf.

"No, you Mad-Eye…" Remus pushed the flattery back.

"How about you Dumbledore what do you think? You'll probably come up with a logical proposal."

"First off, I suggest that the clock that hangs in the Weasley house be restored, modified and then donated to the Order to be hanged in Grimmauld Place, or preferably my office. I'll make two." The headmaster stretched his hand and then took the remainder of the clock from Moody.

"This has always been a useful clock, don't you agree that it can become a little more?"

Both Arthur and Molly smiled with pride.

"Yes Albus, but I don't see how it can be useful anymore, not while it's in this shape." The headmaster took out his wand. He swung it in the air. The clock instantly repaired itself. "Now its fixed and modified." He held up the clock to let everyone look at it.

The clock now had many hands, each with the name of an Order member, all the Weasleys, Fudge, Voldemort, suspected death eaters, Harry's closet friends, Harry and Thomas. The places consisted of 'Hogwarts, the burrow, Voldemort's Manor, Grimmauld Place, Ministry of Magic, Hogsmade, traveling, dead, work, and mortal danger.

"Harry?" Lupin asked.

"Yes, it's for his own good. As you can see, his hand is currently pointing at Hogawarts. It'll be easier to locate…"

Lupin looked uneasy.

"What about the Dark Lord's Manner? Snape asked trying not to sound concern or worried for the other side. "It can't really locate it, can it?"

"No, I'm afraid not. But at least it tells us who is there."

McGonagall nodded. "What about 'dead'?"

"No one's dead yet…"

"If they die like Lily, James and Sirius has, it'll be there—speaking of which, they too deserve to be on this clock." With another wave, three more hands appeared. James and Lily went directly to dead. Sirius's however spun a couple of times, before settling itself in a blank, undefined space. All was quiet.

"Sirius…" Lupin said. "He's not dead…" was all he managed to say. "The clock says he's not dead."

The others did not know what to say.

"Where is he then? What's that blank space?"

"That's where one's hand would go if they themselves do not wish to be found. All we know is he's not dead."

"That's very…very…soothing…to know…"

"Very soothing indeed."

"For now don't worry about him. We've got Ron who is labeled under mortal danger and Ginny who is also like Sirius, You-Know-Who and Thomas, labeled under the blank space." Arthur proclaimed.

"Where is Ginny and isn't it obvious that You-Know-Who and Thomas would be in the Riddle Manor?" Molly questioned.

"It would seem that way, but I guess not. As for were Ginny is, I do not know but I assure you, she is not currently in Mortal Peril." There was a brief silence.

"Now that that's settled, we shall move on."

"But what about Ginny and possibly Sirius?" Lupin asked, more worried about Sirius then Ginny, but mentioned her so that there wouldn't be more fuss.

"We cannot do much, we do not know their locations. We can not help them." The leader of the Order paused. "Likewise, we can do something about Ron, we know that he's currently in…" he glanced at the clock to be sure. "Mortal Peril. I would think he is probably being torture or so but definitely not dead."

Molly nodded.

"And we hope that he'll remain that way until we can rescue him."

"And when may that be?" Arthur inquired.

"Once I get a chance to talk to a very close friend of mine. He might or might not help us. I shall if possible negotiate with him."

"Negotiate? And who may this be?" Moody asked. Dumbledore ignored him.

"If he refuses to help, then the rescue plan will be place in action."

"So it's a back up plan? Another one of your sit and watch plans?" McGonagall asked.

"For now it is."

Moody fixed his magical eye on the headmaster. "That's not what is on your mind, Albus, is it? There must be a reason why you are so hesitant."

"Al, Alastor, there is much inside an old man's mind. Yes, there is a reason why I'm hesitant. It does not matter though. We should focus on what's at hand which is our plans."

"Speaking of plans and tasks, what are they this time?" Arthur asked.

"First off, I suggest that we split this group up, that is, all the people who are currently here…" The headmaster's eyes traveled from McGonagall, to Arthur, to Molly, to Mad-Eye, to Lupin and finally onto Snape, lingering his gaze onto the Potion Master. "Into three groups."

"Wouldn't that make us weaker? Wouldn't The Dark Lord attack us separately and take us down like that?" Lupin nodded in agreement to Snape's words. The headmaster glared at them.

"Not unless there is a spy among us, not unless Voldemort finds out and yes, if that does happen then we might be weaker. However, by splitting up, we'll be able to accomplish more."

"Yes, I agree." Moody nodded.

"One group would focus on finding Sirius, Ginny, Voldemort, Thomas and their whereabouts. The second group is responsible for planning the strategies of how to rescue Ron and the last group, or I should say last person shall crack down on the Dark Arts, and those related to them in the Wizardry World."

"Yes, it seems more efficient."

The headmaster continued, "The first task shall be assigned to Severus and Remus…"

"Alright, at least its Snivellus. Better then getting stuck with Albus, at least I'll have plenty of Wolfsbane Potion to keep me from becoming 'wolfish'…."

Albus ignored the comment, proceeding to assign the next task. "Molly and Arthur, you can take task two."

"Indeed."

"Lastly, I think its about time you to came out of retirement Alastor. It's time to crack down on some more Dark Wizards."

"My pleasure."

"And Minerva, I've reserved the most honorable position for you, a position that I shall announce later."

McGonagall lowered her head slightly. "I'm honored…"

"Very well, I believe the first rays of morning are starting to show." They all looked out of the window, indeed they saw glimpse of sunlight over the horizon.

"Before you all leave, we have one more important business to discuss." The headmaster waived his wand. Goblets of wine appeared before each person in the room.

"I plan on forming a new group, with the most trusted, and loyal members of the Order, the best of the best." He waived his hands in front.

"All of you…" Some raised their eyebrows. "From today forth, you shall be known as the Life Feeders, and I, as their leader, The next Light Lord…"

"Life Feeders?" was murmured across the room.

"Yes, positions similar to the ones of the Death Eaters. However the Life Feeders are members who exist to fight for the Light, who swear never to betray the Light side."

Most nodded, and a few whispered the word 'Life Feeder' a couple of times, yet there were still some who held stern faces.

"And you Albus, the next Light Lord?" Both Lupin and Snape said together with the exact same tone, sounding as though it was rehearsed. The two men stared at each other for a while when suddenly a deep understanding passed through them and a slight smile crossed each of their faces, a friendly smile, one that Lupin used to share with his best friends…

"Yes, I shall be the Light Lord."

A few more mouths fell open.

"Yes, the Wizardry World shall be untied once and for all under the Light Lord. It is the only way to stand against evil, to stand against the Dark Lord."

"but why you?" Lupin asked coolly. "Isn't it suppose to be Harry Potter, the Golden Boy, the Savior of the Wizardry World, The Boy Who Lived?"

"Quite correct The 'Boy' Who Lived." Dumbledore mocked. "Harry's still a boy, he cannot rule. There's already too much burden on him."

McGonagall nodded.

"Besides, I think that I am highly qualified to be a Lord."

Everyone except the Potion Master and Werewolf nodded—those two were shaking hard.

"And may I add that Minerva shall be 2nd in command, my right hand woman…"

"Oh, really Albus, I can't, I can't…" Minerva tried to deny it, but her emotions on her face were glowing proudly.

"No objections?"

Lupin opened his mouth but Snape held onto his robe, pulling and tugging it.

"Very well then…it is settled…"

Dumbledore raised his goblet in a toast.

"To the Life Feeders!"

The others followed suit.

"To the Life Feeders!" they murmured in unison.

Then they all brought the goblets to their lips and drunk it. The goblets then riffled itself.

McGonagall then raised her goblet.

"To the Light Lord…"

Once more the men and women drank to the toast. Unaware to everyone was that 1 had drunk out of his own flask, and 2 had not even touched their goblets, nor toasted with everyone else.


	14. Christmas: Unexpected Twist

**Chapter 14 Christmas: unexpected twist**

"Remus, Severus, a quick word with you," Dumbledore spoke, once the group had drunk up the toasts. "And the rest of you, enjoy yourselves, it's Christmas." They gave a nod, before exiting the room.

"Hmm…you two seemed a little off color during the whole thing today, quite unlike yourselves."

"The news came much of a shock." Lupin muttered. "Who would have thought?"

Dumbledore's face darkened.

"The idea of a Light Lord? The idea of Life Feeders? Come on Albus, you're losing your touch."

"Quite agreeable Remus. Dumbledore, it seems to me that you've stolen the Dark Lord's idea—not giving credit where credit is due." The headmaster glared at the two men, wondering briefly if those two had already crossed over.

"The war has begun. The time to choose sides is approaching, unless of course both of you have already done so."

Neither men spoke.

"And hopefully you will both choose to remain on the Light side." the old man paused as though he needed time to think of how he should phrase what he said next.

"The world is being divided now. Both sides are gathering supporters. It is only fitting that there is a Light Lord to contradict the Dark Lord, only fitting that there are Death Eaters and Life Feeders. Everything exists in a delicate balance. Opposite forces exist in a natural balance, it always has been and it forever will be, that is if both sides remain and neither side swallows the other. That is why every supporter counts. It only takes one person to tip the scale between eternal Light or eternal Darkness."

Dumbledore sighed, seeing no significant response from either man.

"This I shall let you decide. In the meantime you will both work on the task that I have assigned. You are to set apart your differences and come together, join together to complete the task at hand."

Snape and Lupin stared at each other. This time, when their eyes met there was no hatred or loath, quite different from how Snape and Black were when they were forced to set aside the past. Instead something else flickered, something like a new understanding, a new bond.

"I see there won't be any objections to this which is very good…" The headmaster added.

"In this case, I wish both of you a very pleasant Christmas."

The two nodded, before heading outside.

"And oh, Remus, please do take care of yourself. It's Christmas, hopefully you won't hurt anyone tonight, hopefully there won't be any more mischief."

"Yes headmaster." he replied coolly as though he really had control over what he did or didn't do. Without taking another look at the headmaster, Lupin followed the Potion master out of the classroom.

Dumbledore watched the two leave. Finally when they were completely out of ear and eyeshot, the headmaster turned around and bent down. He lifted up his right leg a bit, which was stepping on a tail. Using his hand, he picked up the creature by its tail. The rat fidgeted.

"Well, well, well, I suppose you heard all. Now what to do with you? .I can't have you reporting back to Tom, oh no, that won't happen Peter, that won't happen at all…."

* * *

There was a brief silence. 

"Can I speak with you alone now?" It came out slowly, word for word, not a request, but more of a command.

Remus nodded.

"Alright…."

This was followed by more silence as the two headed down the quiet, empty corridors to a nearby empty classroom.

"You didn't drink, nor did Mad-Eye…" Snape finally said, after a bit more silence.

"Mad-Eye's famous for only drinking out of his own flask. Yes I did not either, but then neither did you." Lupin replied smoothly. Snape stared intently at the werewolf.

"Why?"

Remus shrugged. He didn't really know why. All he knew was that he highly disagreed with Dumbledore, in fact, he had been speaking against the headmaster for quite some time.

"No reason and even if there was, what makes you think I'll share it with you?" Lupin replied carefully.

"I see…"

"What about you…" Lupin asked taking off the invisible pressure put on himself and placing it on the other.

The Potion master smiled. "Dumbledore's got one thing right. It is time to choose sides."

Lupin frowned. "Have you done so?"

"Yes I have." He glanced at the place where the Dark Marks laid underneath his sleeves. "I know where my loyalties lie."

Lupin followed the other's eyes. "To Voldemort?"

"Yes, I trust you'll keep your mouth shut."

"Where your loyalties lie does not concern him or me." There was another pause.

"Oh doesn't it?" Snape asked softly "Have you already forgotten about the VPM---"

Lupin's head shot up at this, effectively causing the other to shut up. A smile graced Snape's lips.

"I see you have not." The Potion Master stated before adding ever so quietly. "I have rejoined the pack. Will you?"

"I lie with neither" again Lupin spoke quite carefully, trying to gain both control and composure. "I am neither Dark nor Light. However I will say this—I have placed my whole life, or however much is left of me, into protecting one man, into Harry Potter. That is the path I have chosen. I've promised the boy, promised him that I'll stick by him no matter what happens."

"Then you'll be in for a big surprise…." Snape whispered softly, Lupin barley catching the words. "And the inevitable will occur."

"What?"

"Never mind…"

"Anyways, I know where the Dark Lord, Thomas, Black, and Ginny are."

"What?"

"I said I already know where those people are. For a werewolf your senses are quite low."

"Then why didn't you speak up?" Remus asked, ignoring the last comment in favor of finding out more.

"I told you, my loyalties lie with the Dark Lord and his son. Do you really think, do you really think I'll betray them?"

"No…." Remus said softly. "But what about Sirius and Ginny? Ron would probably be with Voldemort."

"Yes, he is. As for Sirius and Ginny, I think I know where they are but I cannot tell you just yet."

"Why?" The werewolf demanded.

"I want to know where Padfoot is, he might be, he might be hurt."

"I assure you if he's alive then he'll be in perfect condition. I can guarantee that."

"You're speaking in riddles Severus. If you know where they are then won't it help us all if we found them? Severus, I don't think you understand, understand how much finding Sirius means to me, means to Harry."

Snape thought a bit, noting the stern face on the other man.

"Very well, I shall tell you. Meet me tonight preferably in human form in the Whomping Willow. If I decide to tell you then it would be done then. In the meantime I must consult with someone about this, I'll send a letter and hopefully get a reply soon."

"But…you know I can't be exposed to the full moon…"

"Go earlier then. I think that's the only private place we'll be able to meet. Tonight at 1 AM at the Whomping Willow," Snape paused to think "The hallways should be clear by then for most people would either probably be asleep or at the ball, that is if it lasts that long…"

Lupin nodded. "Very well then I shall wait for you…."

* * *

"Where is he? Wormtail should be back by now." Voldemort said impatiently. 

"Milord, I think he might have encountered some problems. A rat is not reliable…" Padfoot said smoothly.

Voldemort scoffed. "It was a simple task Black, .he was just suppose to deliver the Christmas presents to Thomas."

"Do you think it's possible that Thomas kept him? You know, to help him do another task before he returns?"

"Well he better not be…" Voldemort continued darkly. "I have another task for him. Hopefully Black, you remember what day it is today."

"Yes…Christmas…"

"Thus I have a great present for Dumbledore himself."

"And why must you always have a rat do the work for you? Why can't it be me?"

Voldemort turned to face the man before him.

"Peter Pettergrew is considered dead to the wizardry world. Few people know of his existence and even few knew of his Animagus form—a rat. It is easier for him to help carry out my tasks."

"I too am an Animagus. I'm a gigantic back dog that is larger then a bear with gleaming eyes…" Black said abruptly. "My lord, you do know what that stands for, do you?"

"Of course I do. It's a death omen that some say is the cause of death for seeing the 'Grim' is like seeing death." Voldmort laughed coldly. "It suits you Black, suits you well. You are far darker then all my Death Eaters combined, but not quite a Lord." Here Voldemort paused and studied Sirius.

"So you are the 'Grim'. I've always wondered who it was. I still remember the time when there was no such thing as the 'Grim'. You've established quite a reputation for yourself Black."

Black too laughed coldly. "Yes, yes I have. I, known as Padfoot to my friends is known as the 'Grim' to enemies." Black turned into his Animagus form. A smile crossed over Voldemort's lips.

"Very well, my Grim, I'll send you on this task along with Bella, and Lucius. I can't wait for Wormtail any longer, he shall be punished for being late…."

"What is this task my lord?" Black asked after returning to his human form.

"Get the other two and then I'll tell you all at once."

"Yes…milord…"

* * *

Snape scribbled down a few words. He stared at them for a bit, making sure that if it was intercepted, no one would understand what was written on it. Quite satisfied, he tied it to an owl and watched it fly away. He didn't have to write it in letter form, but decided to, for this way it would seem less suspicious.

* * *

Three pairs of eyes widened. 

"Do you understand the task?"

Malfoy, Lestrange, and Black only nodded their heads quite numbly.

"I know what you are thinking, thinking that it's impossible…"

"Yes…" Black murmured.

"However it is not. If it is done correctly then all will go well."

"yes milord…" Malfoy whispered.

"The key to this is to break the main…"

"But I thought it's at Hogwarts. The reason why the Light is still standing is because of Hogwarts and Dumbledore. Why not concentrate there?"

"Two reasons, the first is that Dumbledore is still too strong for a direct attack and the second is because I do not wish to ruin Thomas' special moment, his special day. He'll blame me if I ruin it."

Black chuckled a bit, trying to cover up what sounded like "Teens". Voldeomort glared at him.

"Besides, if the plan succeeds, then the Wizardry world will soon crumble."

"I see…" Bella nodded.

"The three of you shall be in charge of this. It is crucial that we get a victory. We can't afford to mess this task up."

"Yes we understand."

"Good. Remember to fire both Marks in the sky."

"Yes….of course…"

"Then go. It wouldn't be a Christmas present if it isn't given on Christmas."

* * *

Harry sat up in bed. He groaned a bit. He barley had any sleep last night and now he had to face another day, to face another Christmas. Harry jolted awake as he realized it was Christmas. A scraping noise came from the window. He tilted his head back to find an owl scraping it with its talons. He went over and opened the window. The bird flew in, landing on his arm. Harry took the note. There wasn't anything written on the outside, but he felt sure that it was for him. 

_H---- _

_There was an emergency Order meeting less then 10 minutes ago. Very peculiar conclusions have surfaced. The redhead's clock has been updated. I suggest you take a look at it. It now hangs in the Light Lord's office and also at Snuffle's place. _

_In regards to Snuffle, is he alive? The Redhead's clock says so. I suggest you also go look into this, if you haven't done so already. Of course you can wait for Moony and my reply for the Light Lord assigned us this task—to discover his whereabouts—the simplest task of them all, of the task that were assigned to the Life Feeders. Anyways, can't tell you more about that right now in case this falls into the hands of the enemy. _

_The point of this note, or rather letter, however is not to tell you this. My main concern is Moony right now. I think its' about time you shed some light onto him. He's the only one left in the Dark right now and has always been. I don't know if you know this and I don't know if I should be the one telling you this, but Snuffle's is actually HIS best man. Of course you know that the Rat and I were always at HIS side, but not sure if you knew that about Snuffle. In any case if he is alive, he can explain that to you, otherwise you can ask his cousin or ask HIM directly. _

_Again, my point is it's been quite unfair to Moony. I think he'll understand. Better tell him now otherwise he'll find out the truth from someone else. _

_Today's Christmas, it's also going to be full moon tonight.This means, it'll be the perfect time to tell him if you are going to at all. It won't look that suspicious. Moony being away in his other form, you thought to be at tonight's ball, it's perfect. _

_So, it'll be tonight at 1 past midnight at the Marauder's secret whereabouts. _

_Snivellus_

Harry blinked a couple of times. He slowly reread it. He understood most if not all of it.

_It's obviously for me, from Snape, though it surprises me that he'll sign with that name. Wonder what happened to the Weasley clock, how was it modified? Oh no…wait…shoot! That clock says that Sirius is alive which means they'll be out looking for him again. Light Lord? Life Feeders? What or who the hell is that? I guess Snape does know who father's right hand man is. He too has a point, it's time that Moony be informed. It might be hard for him. But better now then later…or never…Alright then, tonight I'll meet them there._

Harry flipped the note over and scribbled down

_Confirmed. Tonight then, I'll be waiting. I know where Snuffle's is. I'll ask him to come if possible._

He then tied the note back on to the owl and watched it fly off. Then he waved his hand. Two more parchments appeared. On one he wrote the following.

_Padfoot, _

_Tonight 1AM inside the Willow… _

_Thomas _

_P__S: Don't need to reply….I'll be waiting…._

On the other he wrote a note to his father.

_Father, _

_Merry Christmas! Hope you are alright. It's horrible that I can't spend it with you. Hope you won't mind that. _

_Snape just sent me an owl. I think you should know about this. There's a new Light Lord and a bunch of Life Feeders. I'm not sure who they are, but I'll ask him later. He didn't speak in details, just in case the letter was intercepted. But whatever or whoever it is, must be stopped. You know what I mean. _

_By the way, if Padfoot's around, can you tell him to meet me tonight, 1 am inside the Whomping Willow. He knows where that is. I sent him a letter already, but not sure if he received it yet. _

_Your Son _

_PS: Hope you like your Christmas present…._

With a flick of his hand, a package appeared. He tied the package with the note to his father securely to an owl's leg. Then he tied the note to Sirius to another owl. He didn't use Hedwig for fear that she would attract too much attention or be easily recognized.

With that accomplished, he stood up and stretched a bit. He cocked his head to the side and noticed a clock that was hanging on the wall. It read 12:30 pm….

_Oh no! I've slept that long? No wonder there's no one else in here. I should get moving; get up and about before the old fool becomes suspicious. _

Hastily, he made his bed the Muggle way, changed into casual wear, and then left for the Great Hall.

* * *

Two owls came flapping in. One of them landed on his arm. The other landed on another man's arm. Voldemort took the letter and package from the one who landed on his arm. He glanced sideways at Black who had received the other letter. 

"Still here?" Voldemort asked.

"Milord, I shall leave soon. Lucius and Bella are gathering the other Death Eaters. Once that is done then we will leave."

Voldemort nodded, then opened the letter. Black did the same with his. Both remained silent for a bit. Then at the same time, they said, "It's from Thomas…"

"He wants to meet you at the Whomping Willow, am I correct, tonight at 1 am…"

"yes milord, how did you know?" He handed his letter to Black, who too read it. "I see…" he said after a while.

"You can go Black as long as it does not interfere with my task."

"Yes I will," he paused. "Who do you think the Light Lord and Life Feeder's are milord?"

Voldemort did not reply for a bit. "That you shall ask Severus when you see him. You can report back to me later."

"Yes milord…" "

Good, then now you shall set off. Yyou don't have much time if you are going to meet Thomas tonight." Black nodded. With a pop, he disappeared leaving Voldemort to himself.

* * *

Harry skidded off to the Great Hall. When he entered, he found himself the center of attention. All eyes were locked on him. He looked up at the staff table to see Dumbledore in the midst of giving a speech. His eyes then landed on Snape whom he gave him a nod, which the Potion master returned. 

"Um…excuse me…." He mutters before heading swiftly into a seat at the Gryffindor table.

"Ah as I was saying before Mr. Potter interrupted is that…." Dumbledore paused as if trying to recall what he had been saying a few minutes before. "Ah, yes, tonight is the first anniversary of the Christmas Ball." There was a brief moment of cheers. "Yes, I too am very excited about this however I shall now lay down some ground rules." This time there was booing.

"Rule #1, this is only restricted to six and seventh years. Anyone younger caught there or in the hallways at the time will be severely punished." The headmaster said loudly as if to cover up more shouts of 'why' and 'no fair'. "Fifth years and below are to remain inside their dormitories, you can celebrate all night in there." The hall had become a bit more restless.

"Rule #2, those attending the ball must be a couple, dressed in formal dress robes. No one else will be admitted." Many students were shouting disagreements.

"And lastly Rule # 3, the ball will begin from 9pm until 1 am. All must leave then, and those who don't will be punished." The headmaster's eyes swept through the tables and the people who had stayed during the holidays.

He clapped his hands, waived them in the air a bit to cause the lunch plates to disappeared.

"Have a Merry Christmas! You are all dismissed!" Everyone rose to leave the Hall.

"Harry! Where have you been?" Hermione asked, once everyone began to leave. "What the hell were you thinking last night, wandering off at night. It could have been you…you…you know that…"

"Could have been what?" Harry asked casually. "I wasn't wandering at night, I was with Snape….."

"That's right Granger…" a cool slick voice spoke up from behind. "And unless you have something to say the Potter, I'll have him come with me." They both turned to see Snape standing there. A few meters away, a few more people were coming towards them. Unfortunately for Harry, he couldn't get away with Snape before everyone else approached.

"Harry! Oh God Harry!" was the first thing Cho said as she flung her arms around his neck. "Oh God, promise me you'll never do that again. I was so worried about you."

Harry held onto her shaking body.

"After Dumbledore announced this morning that Ron was taking by You-Know-Who….."

"Sh…Cho…I'm alright…I really am…"

"I really thought it was over, with you in the same dorm as him and you gone the whole morning and stuff."

"Relax Cho…I'm sorry alright…" and he really meant it. "I'm sorry for getting you all worried about me ok? I'm alright, I'll always be." He held onto her as his eyes went from person to person.

"Harry James Potter! Harry James Potter! "was all that Lupin could say, in a quivering voice that was filled with both anger and relief. Harry could tell by how the werewolf had paled so much that he was worried sick about him.

"You gave me a heart attack. I had thought, I had thought that," Lupin caught himself there and started over again. "Never, never again am I going to let you out of my sight. You know what? You could have gotten yourself killed! Ronald Weasely was taken last night and…and… well never mind. I was afraid, I was afraid that…"

"Moony, I'm sorry ok? I really am sorry. Sorry that I got you guys all worried about me, sorry for being the one who brings nothing but trouble….." Harry untangled himself from Cho and hugged Remus tightly. Remus was going to correct Harry's last statement but before he could, another voice spoke up.

"You should be Harry. I think you owe us all an apology." Both Dumbledore and McGonagall had also arrived. Harry lowered his head a bit.

"Alright…I'm sorry everyone ok? I'm sorry I've caused you all to be worried about me, sorry that Ron was taken. It was my fault, and I should be blamed. If it wasn't for me, he would not have been taken…." He looked from one person to another, meeting everyone's gaze but the headmaster's.

"Apology accepted…" Dumbledore said, his voice a bit strained.

"Very well Potter, would you come with me?" Snape interrupted.

"No Harry, I want to talk to you now." Cho said.

"Nope, I think I should be the one who should be talking to Harry," Lupin said as he took a firmer grip on Harry, as though he was afraid the younger man would disappear. Harry's eyes went from Snape to Cho to Lupin, suddenly wishing he could split himself in three so that he could go with all of them.

"No…" Dumbledore said firmly. "I must talk to him now. If it's nothing serious then I'll prefer if you come with me Harry." Dumbledore's gaze swept through the crowd. Snape looked as though he would protest but at last he did not say anything. The others nodded their assent and Harry had no choice but to follow Dumbledore.

* * *

Voldemort heard Black leave with a pop. He shifted the package in his hands. Wondering what his son had given him, he opened the package. He stared at it in awe, before lifting it up for examination. 

Inside was a ring, or what looked like a golden ring. The only thing special on it was that it had a miniature skull engraved on it.

Voldemort chuckled a bit, chuckled that his son would give him such a thing. He wondered what it would do, what magic it had, if it had magic at all. He looked down at the box, and noticed a piece of paper attached to it.

_Father, _

_This is no ordinary ring, although it might seem so at first sight. It's one of its kind for none other exist. It's a regular ring with dark magic that I infused in it. The ring will block the Avada Kedavra curse. Yes, you read correctly. With this ring, the Killing curse will have no affect at all. _

_How? How is that possible? Well let's just say that after living through such a curse and through research and experiments, I have finally found a way to block it. No, it is not as Dumbledore had said. It is not because my mother's love had protected me as I was told, but instead found that it was because of the Dark magic that I had possessed. It's actually a very Dark and Ancient Magic granted to a Pure Dark Wizard (not necessarily a pureblood), must be a Parasltongue (that can only mean you and me) and must be a direct heir to Slazar Slytherin….those were the requirements, and both of us have them all. It's that simple father. _

_So yes, now, I've infused this power directly into an object for you since once you learn how to use this power you won't need the ring at all. The power lays within us. Just use the ring for now and consider it your Christmas present. _

_Thomas_

Voldmort's smile widens. He was very pleased indeed, please with both his son's intelligence and thoughtfulness.

* * *

The two walked in silence. 

"Ear wax" Dumbledore said, and the two gargoyles sprang to life. Harry followed him inside.

"Have a seat" Harry did so taking the seat across the headmaster. Neither spoke for a while.

Then without warning, Dumbledore met Harry's eyes. Harry immediately crumbles up in pain.

"Legilmens!" The headmaster yelled before Harry could remove his eye contact. The office swarmed and once again Harry found himself looking back into his own memories.

"_Get up!" said Snape sharply. "Get up! You are not trying, you are not making an effort, you are allowing me access to memories you fear, handing me weapons!"_

"…_weak people, in other words---they stand no chance against his powers! He will penetrate your mind with absurd ease, Potter!"_

"NO! No! NO!" Harry yelled, throwing off the curse with ease. "I will not let you, Dumbledore, I will not hand weapons to you. I will not let you penetrate my mind!" Harry spat out the words.

A smile curled on the older man's lips. "I see you've taken Severus's words to heart, that is good indeed. A fair warning…." Harry rolled his eyes.

"So you've mastered Occlumency?"

"Not only that….." This time Harry forced his eyes to meet Dumbledore. Trying his best, to resist the pain, he too yelled out, "Legilmens!" This took Dumbledore by surprise.

"_From today forth, you shall be known as the Life Feeders, and I….as their leader The Light Lord…"_

At that moment a jet of red light whished out of the tip of Dumbleodore's wand so Harry raised up his wand in a defensive position. The light from the headmaster's wand vanished. A small smile crept onto the boy's mouth. Keeping his smile, Harry stood up and gave him a mock bow. When he was done, he sat down again and spoke in an icy voice.

"Ah, I see, so Mister Light Lord, thank you for sharing that brief information with me. That made this visit very worthwhile. I'll be leaving now." Harry stood up, did a second mock bow before he turn to leave.

"Ah hem, sit down Thomas. You know perfectly well I did not come to share that with you. It was quite unexpected…."

"Yeah whatever..."

"The reason I asked for you is…." Dumbledore raised his voice a bit, overlapping Harry's. "is that I have a pest problem. For some reason small rodents tend to show up." Harry turned a bit, and then his eyes went from the headmaster to where the man was gesturing.

Standing in the corner of the office was a cage, a huge metallic one with iron bars. Harry wondered briefly why he had not noticed it before. Inside of the cage was short and plump man. His right hand was of silver color.

"Wormtail…." Harry spoke softly, seeing the trembling man. Dumbledore looked between the two, trying to get a reaction from either one, but there was none.

"I caught him overhearing an Order meeting." For the first time, since he had entered the office, Harry seemed surprised.

"and…."

"Now we can't have a rat report back to Tom now can we?"

"No…I guess not…" the boy said, his eyes never moved away from the short man.

"Now aren't you happy Harry? Shouldn't you be happy?"

"Why would I be Albus?"

"Then you're sad, sad that one of your supporters are caught."

Harry gave a cold laugh. "Wormtail? Nah. Albus, he is nothing. He is of no use. Why would I care about a rat like him?"

"Then you won't mind if I dispose of him? You won't mind if I turn him in to the Ministry and free Sirius' name, to prove him innocent?"

"Of course I wouldn't mind. Now Albus, why do you think I care about Wormtail? I don't care about what you'll do to him, why would I? If you think I'll go through all the trouble of negotiating for his life then you're wrong, he's not a bargaining chip. You won't get anything if you hope that in exchange for him, I'll reconsider my plans." "

What about Sirius?"

"What about him?"

"If I had Sirius Black, would you think twice before taking an action or does he mean nothing to you? Did Tom replace everyone who cares about you?"

"For your information, father isn't the only one who cares about me and I don't just care for him. Sirius, Sirius will forever hold a place within my heart, there will never be anyone who could replace him."

"I see. Then if I have Sirius, you'll think about negotiating won't you?"

"But you don't have him." Harry countered, though he made a mental note to tell Sirius to stay away from Dumbledore. "Thanks to you, he's 'dead!"

A smile crept over the headmaster. He glanced behind Harry. Harry looked behind himself and noticed the Weasley clock. He studied it for a bit before turning away, making a mental note of what was on it. Indeed Sirius' hand was not labeled under 'dead'. There was another long silence.

"I must be leaving now Albus, it's nearly…." He glanced at his wrist. "1:30 pm. I've already spent an hour accompanying you. You've wasted time. Good day."

As he reached the door, he glanced back at Wormtail who was still shivering.

"And do whatever you like with him, I don't care."

"Wait! Harry, Harry, please wait, please don't leave, don't leave me with him. Please I'll do anything, anything at all. Just, just don't, don't leave me with him." By now the man was on both knees, pleading. "You're just like you're father Harry, you're just like him. Please, please, .he won't want this to happen, please Harry. Spare me from him."

"If I was James' boy then perhaps I would have felt the need to save your worthless life. Sadly I am not. I am Voldemort's son and yes, I am just like my father, every bit like him and since he isn't here, I'll have the pleasure of punishing you. Cruico! After all, you're caught. You did fail him," he said lazily.

However before the spell hit, Dumbledore waived his wand. A chair sprang to life. The spell hit it instead of the man. Dumbledore glared at the boy.

"Accio Wand!" Harry's wand flew out of his hand and into the headmaster's.

"Now you've gone too far boy! I'm taking you to Azakaban! I personally shall make sure you pay for everything!"

Harry laughed. "Give me back my wand Albus, give me it back, otherwise you'll regret it." The headmaster used both wands and pointed it at Harry.

"I've kept my silence too long. I've let you have it your way too long. Now you shall why I am the most powerful wizard of all time." He muttered some words and two jets of green light flashed. "See if you can live up to your name--'_boy who lived'_. I have no regret in disposing such filth."

As the spells came, .a light suddenly consumed Harry, shielding him from the killing curse. When it disappeared, both Harry and Wormtail were gone.

Dumbledore cursed at the two who escaped. In his hands, the two wands were still steaming. He blew on them, before pocketing both. Somehow with the newly obtained wand, he felt a more secure, felt a bit more relived and less threatened. After all, no matter how powerful a wizard or witch was, s/he is nothing without his or her wand.


	15. Christmas: The Attack

**Chapter 15 Christmas: The Attack**

Harry knocked on the dungeon door. There was no reply. He knocked again. Finally it creaked open. Harry stepped inside.

"Young Master, what a surprise…" Snape stopped, seeing the darkened face.

"Severus, get me out of here now. Get me out of Hogwarts now." Snape blinked.

"What…" and then he spotted the rat on the boy's shoulder.

"No time to explain, Albus and I had a fight over him." He jerked his thumb at the rat.

"He took my wand and tried to kill me .Get me out of here now and try to get back my wand…."

Snape nodded numbly at the sudden change. He took out his wand, pointed it at a quill and muttered "Portus…" Then he handed it to Harry.

"Don't worry, I'll try to get back your wand." The boy nodded a 'thank you' before the Portkey took effect, taking both Wormtail and Harry away from Hogwarts.

Thud! Harry hit a figure as he landed. It knocked both of them onto the floor. Harry's glasses fell off, causing everything to become a blur.

"Harry?" A voice asked.

"Huh?" he replied. He saw a figure lean closer, and closer until his vision focused, as the person help place his glasses back on.

"Ginny…."

The red head smiled.

"I'm glad you're alright." Ginny beamed down on him. She stretched out her hand, and helped Harry onto his feet. "What are you doing here Harry? I thought you were suppose to be at Hogwarts."

The boy only grunted, meaning that he didn't want to speak of it.

"You, Ginny, How are you doing?"

"Ok…I guess…Not much to do around here you know…" Neither spoke for a while.

"Have you seen Ron yet?"

"No, I heard he was taken to the dungeons. I think Black persuaded Master to let you deal with him."

"I see. Do you know where Sirius is?"

She shook her head.

"Ok, I'll ask father later when I get a chance to see him. In the meantime since you have nothing particular to do now, would you mind if I assigned you a task?"

"Certainly, anything for you Harry, I'll do anything at all."

"Good…"

Harry stepped forward and leaned closer to Ginny. "I just want you to watch Ron. No one knows who you really are, well 'sides Dumbledore and McGonagall, but I don't think they'll reveal you. They are both fools. Dumbledore thinks keeping my true identity away form the world would help matters. He thinks concealment is the key."

Ginny chuckled. "So, I see, then Harry, how do you think I should watch over my brother without him knowing it?"

"You won't mind being locked up a bit would you?"

Ginny thought a bit, giving Harry a raised eyebrow. "Meaning?"

Harry waved his hands, and the girl's arms and legs were chained. He rolled up both of her sleeves. Tapping it gently, both Dark Marks vanished, leaving no trace at all.

"The marks are concealed, not just invisible but actually concealed. No spell could reveal. No person would know unless of course you wish them to."

"So a spy then? Spy as a prisoner?"

"More or less." Harry paused. "Anything that might occur to a prisioner may occur to you. I can promise you no protection. You don't have any objections do you?"

"No, I told you Harry, I'll do anything for you, anything at all"

_No matter what Harry, no matter what it is I'll do it for you because…because I…I love you…I'll do anything for that. If only it was me and not Cho. If only you had eyes for me and not her…but no matter, I love you and that's all that matters to me…_

Harry stared at her for a while then turned away as he read her thoughts. He shrugged off that thought.

_Sorry Ginny, I love Cho and there is no one who could replace her. Sorry, but I can never return your feelings. _

Deciding not to voice his thoughts, Harry took Ginny's chains in his hands, tugged slightly and began to walk towards the dungeons. The rat was still wiggling on his shoulder.

* * *

Snape paced back and forth in his office. 

_Peter Pettigrew, what in the world did you get Harry into this time? Wonder what's going on? Whatever it is, it isn't good. Harry looked really pissed off. Oh well, I shouldn't get it worst, I should find a way to get that boy's wand back…_

Then an idea came to him. Quickly, he searched through the drawers. Finally he found what he was looking for. Holding it up to his eyes, he examined a wand.

_Hmm…I have to give credit to the Weasley twins. It's so real, Hmm, what was these called again, these fake wands? Oh well, no matter, I'll just change it a bit to look and act like Potter's wand. _

Then he took another book down from his Potion's shelve. On the cover was a photo of Harry Potter with the title Harry James Potter: Savior of the Wizardry World

_Amusing…Harry, the savior of the wizardry world? Ha! Don't make me laugh! _

He flipped through the book, his finger traveling down the words, going through page by page. Finally his finger stopped.

"Ah, here it is, eleven inches holly with a phoenix feather inside its core." Snape shut the book with a loud bang. Then taking out his own wand, he began to adjust some features on the fake wand, suiting them to his needs.

* * *

Harry paused at the dungeon's door.

"Ready? Are you sure you can go through with this?"

"Yes…Harry…"

"Just remember, if you experience any pain, it is not meant, just follow through. If it's too much then, well…"

"No, I'll do it. I'm not changing my mind. I know you don't mean anything, so everything would be alright."

"If you say so, just don't let anything slip." With that, Harry snapped his fingers, and the doors flew open.

Inside, was a corridor with individual cells, arranged much like Azakaban. In fact, it could be consider Azakaban's relic. None, but one cell, was currently occupied.

The two mouths dropped open at what they saw. Harry quickly recovered, nudged Ginny who shut her mouth, and then slipped into his dark, emotionless face.

There before him was Ron, screaming in agony, though no sound came out. Voldemort had his wand pointed at the boy. Judging by the looks of the Red head, the Cruciatus Curse had been placed.

Ginny's look of terror turned out to be quite realistic for she did feel fear as she watched her brother in agonizing pain. Of course, she had placed the Curse on many others, however, seeing her brother, her own family member at the hands of Voldemort was a different matter.

"Harry….please…." she muttered, pleadingly. At this, Voldemort lowered his wand. He and Ron, glanced at the door, as if they hadn't noticed Harry and Ginny had enter. Both pairs of eyes lingered on them, Voldemort a questioning look, and Ron a look of sheer terror.

"Harry, please, why did you bring me here? Why did you bring me to HIM?" Ginny began to stutter. "Why did you betray us? How could you betray us? You traitor! Traitor!"

Harry swung the girl away from her, flinging her to his father who caught her by her collar.

"Betray? Betray you? I never recalled anyone asking me if I wanted to fight Voldemort! Dumbledore, he…he forced me to fight against my _own_ father! HE God Damn LIED to me…"

"What? For God's Sake Harry! What's wrong with you?" Ginny forced herself to cry, shaking her body uncontrobaly as she pretended to resist the grip Voldemort had on her.

"You're a…a POTTER…a Potter….and your father is James…" Ginny twisted her body some more before turning towards Voldemort.

"What did you do to him? What did you do to Harry? You Monster!"

"You…you…don't….don't know what you are talking about Ginny!"

All three spun around, and stared at Ron, who had spoken.

"He's a SNAKE. He's a filthy snake and must have trick the hat for putting him in Gryffindor."

"Ron, what the hell are you talking about? How could you side with him?" Ginny wailed. "He's Harry Potter. He's your best friend. You-know-who must have done something to him!"

"I saw it with my own two eyes. I heard it with my own two ears. He looks totally different…." Ron turned to face Harry, a face of hatred written on it. "He…he doesn't even look like this….For heaven's sake! He is THOMAS JERRY REAPT RIDDLE!"

"OBLIVIATE!" Voldemort roared, interrupting what would have been a never ending argument. The jet of light swished through the man's wand, hitting the redhead's stomach. Instantly, the boy fell backwards, hitting the stone cold floor.

Ginny quickly scrambled out of Voldemort's grip. At a safe distance, she bowed before her Master.

"Forgive me milord for…"

Voldemort merely raised a hand and she stopped speaking. Harry magically opened Ron's cell.

"You sure you'll be ok?"

"Of course"

He gently gripped her shoulder, leading her inside. Then he kicked Ron a few times, before exiting the cell.

"Thank you…." He muttered, then without looking back at her, he followed his father out of the dungeons.

* * *

Dumbledore paced back and forth through his office. He was indeed frustrated.

_What in the world should I do? Should I have kept my temper in at first and not acted so rationally, letting the spell hit Peter? If I had done so, then Harry would still be under my nose and I'll still be able to keep an eye on him. However, if I hadn't Peter would have gotten hit by the Cruciatus Curse and no matter who's side he's on, he doesn't deserve it…_

The scene flashed through the headmaster. It was still fresh and clear.

_Yet, what happened has happened. I will not change it, even if it's possible. Harry has chosen his path of darkness and destruction. I have chosen the path of light and life. Harry, I know well will meet again. Hopefully, next time, we will not be on the opposite ends of the battlefield. _

Like a dreamer, he still didn't quite want to accept Harry's decision. Somehow, deep inside, he hoped again and again that this was still a dream, hoped that he'll wake up and find Harry by his side, fighting the darkest, foulest creature on earth.

_Dream on Albus, you know it's too late. Harry IS Tom's son. From the very start, you knew he was a Riddle. You knew that somehow, someway he'll find out and leave you. Now, that he has there is nothing you can do. You didn't provide him with the truth from the very start. You lied to him and that is undeniable. What can you provide Albus, what is there that you can give that might change his path? Nothing. There is nothing you can offer him. Voldemort is much more then you'll ever be…Admit it Dumbledore…_

Dumbledore bit his lower lip. That small nasty voice, buried in the back of his head, kept telling him to give up hope on Harry. Yet, he did not want to.

_No…In time…in time he'll see…he'll see the mistake that he's made and when that time comes, I'll be sure to welcome him with open arms and until then, until then, I must keep his secret a secret, the secret that he's turn dark. When it's time, Harry will announce his side, it's not in my place to do so. When he does, and if he does choose to remain as a Riddle, I'll personally make him pay for it. _

With that set in mind, he decided to leave his office, after all staying cooped up for a while would defiantly get the staff worried.

* * *

"You and Weasley put up quite a show back there."

"Had to, it's the only way."

"Way to what?"

"Get Ginny to watch over him without it becoming too obvious."

Voldemort turned slightly towards his son. "I see…."

The man's face contorted, as if he just realized something. "Crucio…."

Harry stood still, having half expected to be punished for leaving Hogwarts. However, the spell didn't hit him. Instead, it hit the rat, which was clinging on his shoulder.

"You failed your task." The man said to the rat who had just transformed to his human form. Wormtail's scream echoed through the corridor.

"Master, Master please, .please forgive…."

"Too late, I had to send Black out on a task. You do know what that means right?"

The man quivered even more then before.

"I'm sorry…I'm sorry…"

"Father, you sent Sirius on a task?" Harry asked. The man lowered his wand and turned it onto him.

"Don't butt in. You know you weren't supposed to leave Dumbledore no matter what happens. He's suppose to keep an eye on you so that there is less suspicion!"

Harry's mouth snapped shut. With that, Voldemort once again rounded on the man before him. Finally, nearly an hour later, done with torturing Wormtail, Voldemort let him leave.

"Father, I'm sorry…" Harry said, after Wormtail had disappeared.

"I don't forgive….anyone…" The man replied, deadly quiet, this time turning fully towards his son. Harry expected spells to be thrown at him, however it did not occur.

"I know you had a fight with the old fool, and it's good that you left before it got any worst…." He paused. "However, Harry, You must realize that leaving Dumbledore is the worst thing you could possibly do. I don't care what he does to you, but you must not disappear from him."

"Does that, would that include confiscating my wand, and using both his and my wand against me by throwing two Avada Kedava curse at me?"

"Yes, I told you Harry, I know what happened, so you don't have to tell me. I know everything that goes on, more then the old fool would ever know."

Harry remained silent.

"Let me state this clearly Harry, no matter what happens, don't fight against Albus Dumbledore. You cannot win."

"But you, you fight against him. I'm you're son, I have every right to stand by you. I'm not weak, I can hold my own against him, the way I have against you."

Voldemort glared at his boy.

"Why don't you give it some thought! I am Voldemort! The infamous Dark Lord, .of course I'll be fighting against Dumbledore, that's no surprise! However you to the outside world, until the day you announce yourself as my son, will be known to the Wizardry world as HARRY JAMES POTTER! Potter is part of you wheatear you like it or not. Right now you're living a double life as Thomas and Harry. To the Wizardry world, Harry Potter is the 'Savior' who would defeat me."

"but I don't want to, I don't want to fight against my own blood bone and flesh. .If there's anyone who I'll fight against it'll be Dumbledore!"

"I know that." Voldemort said softly, his face relaxing a bit.

"Do you understand now my boy?"

"Yes, but isn't it too late?"

"You have two choices."

Harry was kind of confused.

"You can either announce to the world who you really are or you can try and mend the gap between you and Dumbledore. You can try apologizing and perhaps doing him a favor." There was a brief silence. "Before you make your decision, you must realize that the former will destroy your previous known life, creating hatred and loath between your love ones on the other side while the latter would most likely cause a face off between us and perhaps fulfilling the false prophecy."

"I don't want the latter to occur. Alright, I think I'll announce myself. Besides, there's nothing, no one on the other side who I can't turn my back on. Sirius' alive and dark, so is Wormtail and Snape. I don't care about the Mudblood I once called friend, nor the professors, and especially don't care about the headmaster, there's no one on the other side who I'll regret turning against, that is, that is except for, except for…" his voice tailed off.

_Moony and Cho._ _I don't want to hurt either of them. I really don't want to hurt Remus or Cho…_

Harry shook his head a few times.

"No one…." He muttered. "No one at all…"

Voldemort bore into Harry's thoughts, picking it up clearly. Then he slowly took off the ring which Harry had given him.

"Perhaps, perhaps someone else may need this more then I. Perhaps there are still people out there, people who are more worthy of this possession, and may need it more then I…."

"But it is for you father. What would happened if something ever happens to you?"

Voldemort grinned. "Hey, I've lasted this long with out a immortality band. I've been able to revive and survive numerous disasters, you don't have to worry about me. I know you got a good, pure heart Harry and that you spent so much time making it, .however, I think you gave it to the wrong person, now why don't you take it back."

Harry stared at the ring, finally accepting it.

"Just be careful who you give it to for its very powerful, and filled with Dark Magic. It's not something to be handled lightly."

"Yes I understand father."

"Now that that is settled, why don't you go and make a name out of yourself before you announce yourself tomorrow."

"Tomorrow? So soon?"

"Yes, if everything goes well, if Black, Malfoy, and Lestrange is able to complete the task, then the Wizardry world will fall. Dumbledore will soon be kneeling before us."

Harry cocked his head to his side.

"and what might that task be?"

Voldemort leaned closer to the boy, whispering the plan in his ear. Harry's eyes widen. By the time Voldemort had finished explaining, Harry had a huge smile on his face.

"I was wondering why it was so empty here," He paused. "And its all suppose to happen at once?"

"yes, in fact it is happening right now and should end by tonight so your part would come in tomorrow morning."

"I see, but do you think I can go and help them out, like Sirius and Lucius and Bellatrix, at least them if not others for I know I won't be able to travel around the world in less then a day."

"Yes, that is a good idea."

Harry turned to leave, but then stopped. "Who do you think I should go as, like if people should know if I'm dark, dark Harry or just go as Thomas and then tomorrow announce myself as Thomas Riddle, skipping the 'I'm Potter part?'"

"Just go and decide yourself."

* * *

Dumbledore walked into the Great Hall, surprised to see that all the Professors were gathered there. The atmosphere was still and great tension could be felt.

"Where's Harry?" Remus asked, as the headmaster came into view. All eyes turned to look at the old man.

"I have no idea" Dumbledore replied truthfully, for he hadn't seen the boy after the argument, though he did have an idea of where he might be.

"What happened? Did I miss something?" Dumbledore asked. The Professors looked uneasily among themselves.

"Yes Severus, We would all like to know why you didn't inform us that this would happen."

Snape backed off a step or two. Dumbledore glanced at him and then at McGonagall who had spoken. Once she caught his gaze she said in an exasperated voice.

"We've been attacked Albus."

"What? Who?"

"We…" Molly said, flinging her arms in the air. "As in the Light side."

"Voldemort has struck?" Dumbledore asked again.

"Yes, Tonks dropped by bringing us news that both Dark Marks, You-Know-Who's and the new one had been found above Durmstrang and Beauxbatons, along with other Wizardry Schools across the World." There was complete silence as Dumbledore took in the information.

"Is that so? What about the Ministry of Magic, Hogsmade, Diagon Alley?" He asked trying to not sound like he expected an attack.

"We do not know." There was more silence.

"Where is Tonks?"

"She left with Mad-Eye to stop more attacks if there are any."

"Ah yes, of course, very well why don't the Light Feeders head out to protect us while the rest of the Professor's stay behind. Lupin, Snape, you two stay behind."

"But Albus…"

"Tonight's full moon Lupin, we need a tame werewolf now don't we? Severus, do keep an eye on him. I doubt you'll be called as I'm sure if he needed you, he'll have called already."

Lupin glared at the man, then took a quick glance at his watch, which read 5:30 PM. Dumbledore noticed.

"It's getting late, why don't we have an early Christmas feast then you guys can set off. I think the ball's canceled for tonight." There were a few nods of ascent.

"I think, I think we should just leave now." McGonagall said. "It's more important that we survive. We can celebrate later." There were more nods.

"Yes, yes, I agree." A couple people replied. Dumbledore looked from one to the other.

"Very well, I await your good news. I'll be at Hogwarts should anything happen." With these last words, more then ½ the people left to fulfill there task.

* * *

"Keep up the wards! Keep up the wards!" The Minster of Magic yelled at the top of his lungs.

"It's no use Minster! They're breaking through!" One of the younger Aurors responded. "There's too much of them sir!"

"I don't care! The Ministry of Magic can't fall. It must not fall."

The Atrium was nearly destroyed. The Golden Fountain had already fallen apart. Only pieces of the statues of the centaur, goblin, house elf, witch and wizard remained standing. None of them had jets of water running through them. Puddle after puddle, encircled the floor.

"Kill Fudge! Remember he's the main target!" Black's voice roared above everyone else. He stood there, hooded, dressed in a dark cape, but not a Death Eater robe, directing the battle. "Macnair! Nott! Direct the battle here. I'll go after Fudge myself!"

Black, transformed into Padfoot as he bounded towards the stairs where the Minister had ran off.

* * *

"Crabbe, Golye, come with me!" Bellatrix ordered. "Rodolphus, Avery go north. Rookwood go south. Hogsmade shall become a ghost village!" Then she roared with laughter.

Taking the two Death Eaters with her, Bellatrix barged in and out of the stores, killing any living thing or animal in sight. The Death Eaters swarmed throughout the small village, destroying it completely.

* * *

He reappeared in the mist of chaos. Dead bodies and fallen buildings were everywhere. In the mist of commotion, he stood cloaked and hooded in black robes. His crimson yet emerald eyes taking in the scene.

Three hooded figures were the first to notice him. They quickly went up, arching their backs into complete bows. One of them stood ahead of the others.

"I see that everything's under control Malfoy."

"Yes, of course young Master."

The hooded newcomer turned his head to the sides, as if noticing that all commotion had stopped. The rest of the Death Eaters gathered forming a half circle behind him.

The Aurors, shopkeepers and others also lined up, forming themselves into a pack, their wand pointed at the new comer. The hooded figure's gaze swept across the small group.

"Ah, Tonks, Mad-Eye, Weasley, Weasley, Ollivander…." he spoke, naming the few people who he recognized among the group. Mad-Eye's magical eye bounced in its socket, and then at last his face contorted, as he realized who was standing before them.

"Potter…." He whispered softly. Harry shifted underneath his robes, cursing the man before him. Though, the ex-Auror hadn't spoken loudly, everybody had heard. Tonks and the Weasley twins looked from Mad-Eye to the figure before them.

"Why?" came the next question.

Thomas broke into a high cold pitch laugh.

"The name's Riddle, Thomas Riddle…."

Mad Eye shifted his gaze, still trying to depict the man underneath the hood.

"You're Potter! I swear that you're Potter. You're appearance may have changed, but my eye never lies."

"Very observant Alastor, I have to give you credit. However, I've changed more then you know."

Thomas gently lifted his hands and touched his hood, pondering if he should take it off. Then, with a swift movement, he revealed himself. Sure enough, underneath the hood stood Harry, his cold eyes staring at them.

At that moment, Harry took a step back, grabbed Malfoy's wand, pointed it at himself and muttered a few words. Instantly his appearance changed into that of Thomas.

He then swung it in front of him, and muttered incoherent words. A jet of light swished out of the wand, hitting Moody's man magical eye, which popped out and then lay lifeless on the floor.

Instantly, numerous spells were cast at him. Thomas rolled his eyes. With a flick of his wand, a barrier was cast around him. The spells rebounded back, hitting some of the casters, causing them to fall lifeless on the floor. The spells ceased, as the people realized that they were going to end up killing themselves.

"Consider yourself lucky Moody…" Thomas drawled. Alastor stared at the boy, holding a hand to cover his empty socket, where blood was pouring out. "I didn't come to kill today. This is just a test of strength, a taste of what the real battle would be like" he threw Malfoy's wand back at the owner. Then without saying another word, he walked up to Mr. Ollivander.

* * *

"Well done" Bellatrix said, as she and the remaining Death Eaters stood in the Ghost village. "Master will be please.." She continued, before turning to the remaining group of people.

"Rookwood, fire the Marks as a sign of victory." Rookwood smiled, before taking the pleasure of firing the marks. Then the group stared above them, admiring the Dark Mark which glowed next to Thomas's Mark.

"Come on lets go before reinforcements come."

"Should we go back to Master?" Crabbe asked.

"No, Let's go reinforce my cousin, after all the Ministry of Magic is currently the stronghold among the chosen places."

* * *

Padfoot bounded down the stairs, meeting little resistance.

"Black? Is that you?"

The Black dog halted, turning his head down the other side of the corridor where a red head stood. He growled at the 3rd oldest Weasley. Then without warning, he charged toward the boy, pouncing on him. A second later Sirius was on top of him, holding his wand at the boy's neck.

"Hello Percy."

"Sirius?" Weasley questioned, surprised. The man growled again.

"I see I have the pleasure of ridding Arthur and Molly's disobedient son, the one who turned against his own father." The boy's face paled a bit.

Hem Hem "Ah, caught in the act! I've finally caught you Sirius Black!"

Sirius spun around to see a woman standing a few feet away.

Hem hem! Hem hem, Hem hem! "How Cornelius would praise me. How I've always dreamed I'll be the one who would catch you. You escaped from me last year, however this time" Hem hem "You won't be leaving alive."

"Ah and you must be Dolores Umbridge"

"And you the Convicted Murderer."Hem hem…Hem hem… "Why Potter would try to defend you, I am not sure."

"Cause I'm his Godfather and I shall take out that duty by ridding the world of people like you! People who hurt and destroy a part of him will have to answer to me." Sirius snarled.

Then without warning, he pulled his wand away from Percy, pointed it at Umbridge, mutter a quick Avada Kedava, and watched the green light strike the women, who fell headfirst, her face completely stunned. Then Sirius broke into a cold laugh, one that shook the remaining walls of the building, echoing, sounding much like a manic.

Then all of a sudden, Sirius stopped. He gripped Percy by the neck, and squeezed it.

"Now, where were we?"

"Drop the boy Black. Drop the boy slowly," a shrill voice said, trembling a bit. "Drop your wand and turn around slowly."

Sirius glanced back a bit, seeing that he was cornered by Aurors, the two elder Weaselys and Hogwart Professors.

"I said Black"

"I heard what you said Molly…." Sirius slowly stood up and turned around to face the group, still holding Percy by his neck.

* * *

"And because of the recent attacks I am afraid that the Christmas Ball must be canceled. The second War has begun. Voldemort…." Many filched at the headmaster's words. "And his son Thomas has decided to attack. With the disappearance of Harry Potter." The headmaster paused, as more fear crept through the students. "We must take extra precautions to defend Hogwarts."

There was a nod of agreements.

"And because of the attacks at Drumstrang, Beauxbotons and various Wizardry Schools, we have no reason not to believe that our school would be next. Therefore, for tonight and as long as it takes no one is allowed outside of the Great Hall, that is besides the staff."

There were much booing, which Dumbledore ignore. There was a long pause in which the news sunk in. Then with a clap of his hand, dinner magically appeared before the students, who by now was not hungry.

* * *

"Mr. Ollivander," Thomas said as he approach the man, nodding his head slightly. The wand maker stared at the figure.

"Six years ago I came and purchased a wand from you." The man nodded his head. "and during that time you said how it was curious that I would be destined for it, when it's brother gave me my scar." There was another nod. "Do you remember which wand that was?"

"Yes…." The man said softly. "I remember ever single wand I sold and yours Mr. Pot---Riddle, excuse me, was holly and phoenix feather, eleven inches."

"Yes, and it turns out to be not as unusual as it would be for Voldemort is my father."

Stunned silence came afterwards.

"You're insane!" Someone yelled. "What did Voldemort do to him?" the same person voiced, staring at once of the Death Eater's behind Thomas.

"And therefore it's not that unusual for me to end up with it." Thomas paused, ignoring the outburst. "Do you remember which wand you sold to Voldemort, or Tom Riddle?"

"Yes…thirteen and a half inches, yew, also with a phoenix feather for its core."

Thomas nodded.

"Therefore that should answer your question and indeed, I believe you were partly correct back then when you said, great things would be expected of me. Yes, great but terrible…."

Mr. Ollivander flinched slightly, as he recalled those words. Summing up his courage, he asked another question. He didn't know why Thomas was speaking and not attacking, but whatever the reason he knew this was better then the other option.

"Would you, would you let me see that wand once more, the wand, which like its brother will bring chaos and destruction? I shouldn't have sold it to either of you in the first place, .if only I would have known sooner."

Thomas laughed darkly.

"Why did you think I needed to use Malfoy's wand?" There was no reply so he provided the answer. "I am currently unarmed."

The wand maker shifted his gaze, fingering his own wand.

"Acio wand!" He yelled a couple of times but indeed no wand flew out.

"Indeed, yes you are unarmed" he muttered more to himself then to Thomas.

"The old fool, the crooked nose Mudblood lover confiscated it." Thomas snarled. At this, the faces of the defenders of Diagon Alley seemed to relax. "And by now, he probably snapped it. .Foolish man, Albus Dumbledore, wouldn't he realize that there are other means for me to obtain a wand? Being unarmed won't stop me from mass murder!"

"Yet, even the most powerful wizard in the world, cannot use magic without a wand.." Mad Eye softly interrupted, as he took a step closer to Thomas.

"I told you Alastor, I won't hurt anyone today unless you are bold enough to attack me and if you do so then maybe I'll change my mind and have the Death Eaters finish you off." Alastor stopped and stood still. "In some ways I am a lot more generous then my father is. I'm not as cruel nor as harsh. However I can be, that is if you force me to." He paused, before turning back to Mr. Ollivander.

"Now, can you help me, Mr.Ollivander? All I need is a simple 'yes' or 'no' and do note, I do not take a 'no' for an answer."

"I hope you recall what I said that day, .the day you purchased your wand."

"Maybe you can refresh my memory."

"That the wand chooses its owner, the owner does not chose the wand."

"and…."

"and so each wizard is destined for only one wand and one wand only."

Thomas remained silent.

"If your wand's been snapped by Albus Dumbledore, then I cannot help you. Do you understand?"

"No I don't. I know of people who've owned more then one wand."

"That is possible. But replacements will never be able to replace the lost wand."

Thomas seemed to think.

"and if the wand isn't snapped?"

"Then you, the owner may summon it back, only you can do so." Then Mr. Ollivander stood back a bit, nodded to Thomas, turned his back on him, and then walked away.

"Wait!" The man stopped. "What, what type of spell is it?"

"It's called the Wand Summoning Spell and if you do not know it then I cannot help you. I will not lend my service to a Dark Lord."

"Ah…of course….Thank you…for your help…" Thomas said though he didn't sound thankful at all.

Thomas watched him disappear through the crowd. He waved his hand. A Death Eater strode forward, bending his back. Thomas leaned closer.

"Finish them, I see this is going nowhere."

"Yes, young Master…."

"and do, do a good job Malfoy.."

"Of course, .as you wish young Master…."

Thomas turned back to the group.

"Enjoy….." Then with a pop, he disappeared, leaving Diagon Alley to finish the battle that had started.

* * *

He gripped Percy so tightly, it looked as though he was going to be choked to death.

"Sirius, drop Percy, drop your wand. We can talk over this in a more orderly fashion." The man rolled his eyes at Minerva's pleas.

"Yes, Sirius Black, you're cornered, .how I hungered to capture you."

"Shut up Fudge." Then he paused, and he heard popping sounds. In the next few seconds, a couple of dozens more Death Eaters appeared.

"Why don't you all turn around and see who it is that's really being surrounded."

The others too, who had heard the popping noise, quickly turned around to see that a group of Death Eaters were surrounding them, in three circles, one larger then the next, wands pointing directly at the minister, and his protectors.

"Just in time Bella, perfect timing."

The women standing within the inner circle, directly before Fudge, smiled.

"Ha! Sirius, you never seemed to be able to handle these situations alone. If I recall correctly you always needed me to save your neck!"

Sirius nodded, with a playful grin.

"Yes, every time you were even there for me even when we were stuck in Azkaban…"

"And that's exactly were you are all going" barked Fudge. Bella rolled her eyes, though no one saw, since she like the other Death Eaters were all hooded and clocked.

"You won't mind cousin if I disposed of such filth?" Bella asked.

"Nah, go right ahead, be my guess. I see I'm in no position to do so." Sirius suddenly squeezed hard, Percy choked, his eyes widened and then dimmed as life escaped his body. Sirius then threw the lifeless boy at Arthur and Molly who squealed with shock.

"Sooner or later, they'll all end up like him. It doesn't matter who kills them…"

"Absolutely correct Black…." Thomas spoke, as he materialized from thin air. Sirius opened his mouth, wanted to say something, but shut it, as he felt the boy's gaze glaring at him from beneath the hood.

"However the Minister is reserved for me, he made my life a living hell, he made me the laughing stock of the Wizardry World and now its time for my revenge."

Everyone cocked their head, trying to depict who this young hooded teen was. Fudge was looking intensely at him.

"I don't think I've introduced myself yet. The name's Riddle, Thomas Riddle. I am the heir to the Dark Throne, son of Lord Voldemort." Shocked faces whipped through the people.

McGonagall being the first to recover spoke up. "So you've finally decided to show yourself? After the attacks on Hogwarts, you've finally decide to surface and not hide like a coward behind You-Know-Who!"

"I am not a coward and I do not hide behind others. After all these attacks were all planned out by me, my father has nothing to do with it."

_That's a down right lie!! Oh well, father would understand._

"and these" he swung his hands behind him, towards the group of followers. "are some of my faithful servants." He continued softly.

Fudge looked back and forth with unbelieving eyes, still trying to hope that it was a dream and that he'll wake up in his nice and cozy bed. Thomas advanced on the man, who backed up a bit. He pointed his wand at the teen.

"I swear I'll kill you if you take another step closer. I'll kill you." He opened his mouth to speak, but Thomas grabbed him by his collar and pulled him up above him so that his feet were dangling.

* * *

His body began to tremble and shake. The fork which he held fell shattering onto the floor. The whole Hall became quiet as they watch the Professor fall to the floor.

Snape sitting right next to the fallen man reached out and lend a hand to him. Lupin looked up, and muttered a 'Thank You'.

"Close the window binds Severus." Remus spoke softly as he kept from trembling. He shouldn't have been reckless and ate dinner in the Great Hall, but he had and now he had to get out before it was too late.

The Potion Master shook his head. "It's too late," he whispered. "You're changing. Come on, I got you. We've got to get out of here before you change completely."

"No, you stay. I'll go out myself." Lupin stood up, but crashed onto the staff table as he became unable to stand. His hands and feet were growing as his transformation began.

"No Lupin, here I got you. Trust me alright." With that he threw the transforming man onto his back as he tried to drag the man away from the staff and students.

Snape held in the pain as he staggered outside where he was met by a blast of cold air. With each step that he took, he felt the hands and feet of the human becoming claws, as its nails dug into his skin. Lupin groaned as he felt himself change.

"Severus, Severus, just leave me There's not much time, I don't want to hurt you."

Snape gritted his teeth. "No, I'm not leaving you."

"Why?"

Snape choose to ignore the question, though he answered it mentally.

_Because Thomas would kill me if anything happened to you._ _I'm sure Harry wouldn't be please if…

* * *

_

"You turned my life into hell. You made me the laughing stock of the Wizardry World" Thomas said to the dangling man. "You don't deserve to live."

"What? I have nothing to do with you! We only met today!"

"Really? You persecuted Sirius, you took away my chance…"

"You mean by locking him up in Azkaban?" Fudge bravely interrupted. "He deserves it."

"Next you made me a laughing stock when I tried to convince the world that Voldemort returned. You made people think I was an insane manic! Well guess what? I have become that manic and now I shall make you pay for what you did to me!"

Fudge thought a bit.

"If you're helping Pot--"

"Why don't you take a look at my face?" Thomas lowered the man down a bit so that their faces were staring at each other. Fudge concentrated seeing only darkness. He could barely make out the eyes, the emerald green eyes. Then he saw it, though he could barely make it out, but he was sure that the lightening bolt scar ran down the boy's forehead. He blinked, having thought he had imagined it. Sure enough, the eyes that he saw now were blood red and in the place of the lightening bolt scar was a snake.

"Pot---"

"Now you know." Then with a quick mutter of the killing curse, the Minister fell onto his arms. Yet before his life escaped, Thomas was sure that the man's last words were "Wandless magic."

After a while Thomas threw the lifeless body onto the floor. One of the Aurors hesitantly walked up to Fudge, touched the body and shook his head.

"Dead, he's dead."

Not daring to stand before the teen any longer, he retreated with the Minister's body.

Thomas's gaze swept through the remaining people. His professor's and the elder Weasley's gave him a quizzical look, for like everyone else, they clearly heard the Minister make out what was suppose to have been 'Potter'. Then his gaze landed on Sirius, who was still in the center of the commotion.

"Bellatrix, Lucius, I'm leaving you in charge. Finish them off." Behind him came a murmur of 'yes'.

"Black, if you would follow me back…"

"Yes…." Thomas watched as Sirius's transformed into Padfoot, trampling onto those still Fudge shocked people who were blocking him and then sat down beside Thomas, slightly wagging his tail.

"You won't be going anywhere" McGonagall spoke, as if suddenly she had become the pack's leader. Her wand was pointing directly at the teen's heart.

"Like you came stop me," came the retort.

"You killed the Minister, you killed my students at Hogwarts, you took Ron as hostage, I won't let you leave alive!" McGonagall didn't barely finished her sentence when a jet of light sputter from her wand. However, before it hit, a mist surrounded Thomas and Black. When the mist disappeared, they were gone. The spell instead hit another Death Eater, toppling him onto the floor. In a flash, the battle continued, this time with the Light being surrounded by Darkness.

* * *

"Merlin! Which branch is it?" Snape cursed as he tried to deactivate the branches of the Whomping Willow. Finally, he found it. The branches stopped moving and Snape dragged and heaved a three quarters transformed werewolf inside.

"I don't mind if you transform here."

"Severus, .it's too painful. I can't keep the wolf down any longer. Please get out. Please…"

However before Lupin could finish, he gave a huge growl, letting the transformation complete itself. Snape immediately scrambled out beneath the werewolf before he scrambled out of the beast's way. Snape watched with terror in his eyes as the animal stilled, sniffed and then focused his golden eyes upon him. Snape knowing better then to make any sudden movements, stilled himself as he braced for the inevitable. After what seemed to be like forever, the werewolf finally adverted his gaze and turned his back to Snape.

A woo! The werewolf's sudden cry startled Snape greatly. Snape tried to remain calm as he watched the werewolf howled again. This time when it was finished, a large growl came from the outside, followed by another one. This occurred a couple of times, making Snape wonder what animal had distracted Lupin enough from his human prey.

* * *

Dumbledore watched the two men leave, one on top of the other.

I w_onder what's happened. Childhood enemies do not just become friends._

A wolf cry brought the headmaster out of his own thoughts. Then another cry interrupted the first.

_The transformation's complete. Even with wolfsbane Lupin sounds more dangerous then before. I wonder if after tonight I'll end up having to replace both my Defense and Potion Professors… _

Then out of nowhere, he heard another growl, followed by another one, both from different animals. The wolf cry echoed again and then the other noises picked up. Curiosity broke through causing the headmaster to leave the Great Hall, to follow the sounds to see what was happening.

* * *

Footsteps could be heard. It grew louder and louder. By the sound of it, two beast were approaching. Instantly, Snape took out his wand, and guarded the entrance to the room of the Shrieking Shack. Somehow he felt the need to protect the werewolf who was now lying on his stomach with his head resting upon his front paws. Perhaps it was his way of thanks to Remus for either taking control of the werewolf to prevent the potion master from being slaughtered or perhaps it was thanks to the werewolf for not tearing him to pieces while his human counterpart was locked away. Whatever the reason, the werewolf had deemed his human companion as not a threat and now Snape was repaying the favor.

"Expelle---" Snape stopped, seeing a huge black dog bound on top of him.

"Black!" he barked out with surprise. Before he could recover from shock, a huge lion came up behind the dog.

"Remus," Sirius called out, changing back to his human form. He tried to step closer, but the werewolf, who was now alert and on his feet, growled threateningly at him.

"It's ok Moony, I won't hurt you." he whispered again, trying to advance closer, but was unable to.

He threw a bottle to Snape. "Here feed it to him." Serveus caught it and then stepped closer to the wolf. Moony growled again, giving Snape a wounded expression.

"Please we're trying to help, please Remus, trust me ok." Black continued softly. The werewolf ignored his words and tensed up even further, getting ready to pounce and attack.

The gigantic lion who had been watching from afar now took action. It brushed past Sirius and Snape, taking the bottle in its mouth from that latter before cautiously approaching the werewolf.

To their surprise, the wolf seemed to calm down. It was no longer growling, but instead emitting a deep howl from its throat. The lion approached close enough so that the bottle swung above the wolf's mouth. The wolf sniffed it a bit, taking it in with his senses. Finding no harmful material, it opened its mouth and let the lion use its paw to unscrew the cap and pour it down the wolf's throat. When that was finished, the lion stepped back, crouched down, and began to wait.

Instantly, the potion took effect. Everyone watched as the wolf shifted in shape by first losing the excessive hair and then having the limbs slowly transform into arms and legs. When it was completed, Lupin was human once more.

"Harry!" The man croaked out, his eyes staring directly at the lion. The lion nodded before transforming into its human form.

"Remus."

"Harry! You're an Animagus! Sirius, you're, you're alive! And I, I'm human on full moon!" Remus exclaimed in rapid suceesion. Harry only nodded. "But how? Am I dreaming, I must be dreaming."

"No Moony, this is not a dream." Harry said, sounding a bit sad. "I don't have time for explanations, but…"

"Harry, what's going on?" Lupin interrupted, hearing the desperateness in the teen's voice.

"I just came to say sorry." Harry interrupted, this time his voice was strained with something that Remus couldn't place a finger on.

"Please Remus, forgive me alright? Please…." Harry was somewhat pleading now.

"For what Harry? What happened? What's going on here?" Lupin demanded, this time looking over Harry's shoulder at Black and Snape.

"Harry, we have to leave. Dumbledore's heading this way," was all Black said when his eyes caught Remus' before glancing down at his own hands. Lupin slowly moved his gaze to see Sirius looking at the Marauder's Map. Harry nodded at Sirius' words.

"Please Lupin, no matter what happens I want you to know that I still care for you. I don't want you to get hurt. Please promise me, promise me you'll take care of yourself. Take care of Cho, for me."

By now Lupin was very confused. Again he tried to interrupt Harry but Sirius beat him to it.

"Harry, we have to go! Dumbledore's almost at the Willow…."

"Please Remus! Just promise me. No matter what happens, just promise me. I don't want to hurt either of you—you or Cho—just promise to take care of her and yourself."

"But Harry…"

"Please Remus…." Harry took something out of his pocket and threw it to Snape. "Give it to him tomorrow when he finds out or after he finds out…."

Snape only nodded wanting to ask what Harry had done this time, but knew that this was not the time to ask.

"Harry, come on! We must Portkey out now .Dumbledore's at the entrance…."

"Ok…ok Sirius….Ok…."

Harry turned back to Lupin. "Just promise me to take care of yourself. Remember I don't want to hurt you. Just be careful." Harry continued before adding thoughtfully. "Oh yeah, stay away from Dumbledore, I don't want to end up hurting you. Remember, just remember….."

"Yes…I will Harry….I will" Lupin replied, feeling the desperation in the teen's voice. Harry seemed quite relieved to hear that and now he turned to Snape.

"Snape take care of him for me…." Snape nodded. Then Harry grabbed the parchment that Sirius had. With a pop, the two disappeared.

"Severus what is going on?" Lupin asked, turning fully to face Snape.

"Later Remus, I'll tell you later." he stuffed whatever Harry gave him, into his pocket. "Just change back into the wolf now before Dumbledore gets here."

"What?"

"Just pretend you're an Animagus and change."

"But…."

"Just do it!"

Lupin nodded, and then did the same thing that Sirius did every time he changed from one form to another. To his surprise, he took the shape of a wolf, not a werewolf, but just a pure wolf.

"Ah, there you are," Dumbledore said as he came into view. He glanced at the wolf and then at Snape. The wolf growled at Albus who backed up a bit.

"Don't worry headmaster, I think he's quite tame." Snape stroke the wolf's back, who seemed to be enjoying it. "After all, I am still alive."

"I see." He glanced around the room as if trying to search for something.

"Severus, was there anyone here at first?" Dumbledore asked, trying to catch the Potion Master's eyes.

"Hmm…of course not…"

"You sure now?"

"Yes, why?" Snape stared back into the headmaster's gaze after having occluded his mind. Dumbledore gained deeply into the other's eyes, but found nothing.

"Well, I figured it's Christmas and I'm sure Harry wil notice it as a full moon, so I was wondering if its possible that he'll show up." Dumbledore stated calmly. "After Sirius's death Remus is the next best man he cares about aside from…."

"his girl friend…" Snape finished. Dumbledore's gaze shifted at that. He was about to let slip the word Voldemort to see Snape's reaction, but now held it back.

"Yes, besides Cho Chang."

There was a moments of silence.

"Well Severus, if Lupin is quite tame, I think the two of you can return to the Great Hall. With the attacks its best if we stay together."

"yes, yes." Snape patted the wolf. "Come…."

The wolf looked up at Snape, and then at Dumbledore. Then it started to move. Snape followed closely behind it. Dumbledore brought up the rear making sure the two did end up inside the Great Hall.


	16. Chapter 16

**Chapter 16**

**Heir to the Dark Throne: Harry James Potter**

The bold words shimmered and glowed on the front page of the Daily Prophet. Below the line were photos of Harry Potter sneering at the man before him. Once in a while his image would change to that of Thomas who still bore the same look, though the differences of the two boys were startling. The old man sighed. The twinkle in the man's eyes was gone, filled instead with a sense of fury, anger, and regret. A sense of helplessness filled him. "Albus, Albus, how can this be? How can he cross over? Why, Why?" Hagrid sniffed, as drops of tears rolled down his cheeks. "He's bin fine all along. Why? Why would he cross over! He's got friends, he's got us, he's got Ron and Hermione. The death of Sirius couldn't have drove him away that much."

"Rubeus, Sirius Black is alive! He's responsible for Percy's death." Albus spoke camly, before crunching up the newspaper which he held and then throwing it at the giant. "Apparently he's been working for Voldemort all along. Apparently his cousin Bellatrix had faked his death at the Ministry!" There was a long silence.

"I don't know how I could've been so blind. It was right there in front of me. Why didn't I see it earlier?" Hermione mutter, more to herself then to the others though everyone had heard. Everyone turned to look at her. She looked at them and then at Dumbledore. Slowly she waived her wand in mid air. The words 'Harry James Potter' appeared. With another swish the words rearranged themselves so that now it read 'Thomas Jerry Reapt.'

"Riddle, must have been added because that's You-Know-Who's last name. But why? How could it be that Harry would be his son, its impossible unless…."

Dumbeldore thought a bit wondering if he should tell them the truth, but went against it. He knew that if he told them now then everyone would just leave his side which was something that he could not afford to happen.

At that moment the doors leading to the Great Hall burst open. The headmaster instantly raised his wand and pointed it at the intruders only to lower it as he saw who they were.

"Give me the wand. Give me _HIS_ wand. I need to see to it that it gets destroyed." Mad-Eye said, as he staggered over with two wooden legs while being supported by the Weasley twins. The socket of where his magical eye use to be was empty.

"He did this to me. Albus, he's a dark creature who is just like Voldemort. I'm nearly dead because of him! Constant Vigilance!!" The ex-Auror barked.

"Calm down Alastor…." Dumbledore murmured to Mad-Eye before turning to look at the twins. "Ah, I am pleased to see that both of you made it alive."

"Diagon Ally was attacked…." Fred said.

"And the three of us…" followed George.

"Were the only ones who…" with Fred continuing, cutting off his brother.

"Made it out alive" George finished.

Dumbeldore only nodded, before turning back to Alastor.

"Indeed I have it. I'm afraid it is still intact."

"Intact?" questioned Mad-Eye, not believing what the headmaster was telling him. "You will destroy it!"

"Yes, but…"

"Albus why do you still hesitate! That boy is capable of…." Moody gestured to himself as though he needed to put emphasis on what Harry was capable of.

"I know what Harry is capable of, thank you very much."

"And you don't think he's a threat?" Alastor asked.

For a time Dumbledore hesitated, as though not knowing how to reply. "Not as long as he still has emotions, not as long as he remains humane."

"Just give me it Albus. I will not let you keep such a thing! He nearly destroyed everything with another wand, just think of the power he has with his own."

Albus finally relented. "Very well. It was a good thing that I've confiscated it." Slowly he took out the second wand. He felt more then saw all the eyes watching him. He fingered the wand a couple of times letting his finger run over it. Exerting a bit of energy, he snapped the wand in two.

"No, no!" Snape said, but it was too late. He knew now that he was going to be severely punished for it.

"Excuse me, Severus?" Dumbledore asked with a half raised eyebrow, turning to face his potion's master.

"You snapped his wand. You snapped his wand! Now, now…."

"Now what?"

Snape thought fast. "Now it can't be used as a bargaining chip." He faltered slightly, "You know, he treasured his wand greatly"

"AH, not to worry Severus, I have other weapons to use against him. Besides, Alastor is correct." Snape only nodded, a bit uneasy.

At that moment a large black owl flew in through the open door of the Great Hall. First it dropped a letter down at Snape's foot. Snape picked it up carefully as he tried to conceal his fear for he knew who the Howler was from.

The owl then went over to Lupin and nudged against the man who was coiled up in a corner of the hall, his face buried in his arms. Lupin looked up as he reached for the letter. For a brief moment everyone could see the tear stricken face. The man seemed to have aged over night so that now he had even more graying hair and wrinkles which ran down his face. The werewolf took the letter, placed it next to him and then buried his head once more in his arms.

Eyes followed the owl as it landed in front of the Ravenclaw seeker. Until now, no one had paid much attention to either Lupin or Cho for they had been so quiet, so absorb in their own pain, that no one really noticed them. Cho hesitated, before taking the letter from the strange owl. The owl hooted reassuringly before delivering the last letter to Dumbledore.

Snape stared down at the Howler. His palms were sweating. He knew whom the owl belonged to, and so receiving a howler from his Master promoted much fear. Not knowing what to do he decided to rip it open to get it over with.

"SEVERUS SNAPE!" The voice of Voldemort exploded in the room, causing almost everyone to recoil. "YOU SPY! YOU WILL PAY FOR BETRAYING ME! I WILL HUNT YOU DOWN, TORTURE YOU AND KILL YOU FOR WHAT YOU HAVE DONE!" Then the Howler burst into flames. Severus stood there shocked, wondering what in the world he had done wrong. Finally he concluded that it was because of yesterday's attacks in which he did not participate in. A hand touched his shoulder. He looked up at Dumbledore.

"Severus, it's alright. I won't let Tom hurt you. I'm just glad he didn't find out when you were with him." Snape only nodded.

"How, how, is it possible?" The spy asked out loud, wondering why he was singled out now when Voldemort would have known long ago because of Sirius or Harry.

"Perhaps it is because you did not participate in the torture and murder of innocent people." Dumbledore replied, ingoring Snape's thoughts in which he could read quite easily. Snape only nodded numbly.

"Harry, Harry…" came a small almost whimpering voice. They turned to see Cho hugging onto the open letter with one hand and a ring in the other.

"Harry, why? Why? Oh Harry, please, please come back to me." She continued to sob.

Dumbledore walked over to Cho. He bent down and sat next to her.

"I'm sorry Cho. I'm really sorry about what happened." He then gently took her letter into his hands.

Cho,

I'm sorry. I'm sorry I really am. Please. please don't hate me for this. I don't mean to hurt you. I'll never hurt you. Please understand that this is where I belong. Please understand. No, I know you will understand.

Just because I've finally acknowledge and accept my family ties, it doesn't mean that I'm a totally different person. I still love you just the same. My feelings for you won't ever change. One day you will understand. One day you will realize my feelings for you remain the same and you will come to me. Until then, I will be waiting for you. I'll always be waiting for you.

Love,

Harry

Albus sighed. He placed his hand on Cho's shoulder.

"It must be hard for you, first Cedric and now Harry…"

"Professor why, why?"

"Cho I do not know, I really do not know. He claims family ties, but that is something that I cannot understand. What is it that Voldemort can provide in terms of family that we have not?" finished the headmaster, taking a look at Remus. "I wish I did know, I really wish I did." He added, before standing up to address the last person whom received a letter.

"Remus, Remus…" The headmaster said tentatively as he came closer to the man. There was no reply. "Remus, Remus I know this is hard for you losing both Sirius and Harry at once, but you're not alone in this. We're all trying to cope." Still no reply. The headmaster approached closer, until he was able to lay a hand on the werewolf's shoulder.

Without warning the werewolf spun around. His left hand grasped onto the headmaster's collar while his right held his wand directly at the older man's throat.

"It's all your fault! It's all your fault! If it wasn't for you, if it wasn't for you then…."

"Remus, Remus let go…" Dumbledore said calmly, unfazed by the younger man's actions.

"No! You drove him away. You drove Harry away from me! You made him go dark! You drove him away from me! Drove him away from the only person he's got!" Remus yelled. "Drove away the only person I've got left." As he said those words, Remus could feel himself breaking. He had already lost James, he had already lost Lily. He had lost Sirius for the third time so he was somewhat immune to that, but now he had lost Harry.

_I've lost Harry. I've Harry. No! No! No!_

Remus refused to accept that but reality was finally sinking in.It was the truth and now that he realized it, he had suddenly become very weak and so his hands somewhat loosened its grip.

"Remus! Remus! Calm yourself! Control your temper, control your emotions. Listen to me. Let me go and we can talk this over." Dumbledore whispered just as calm as before.

"No! No! I won't listen to you anymore!" Lupin cried out, suddenly remembering why he was angry with the headmaster. He felt a pair of hands grasp him from behind. He tried to shrug it off, but instead found that the hands took hold of him tighter. The next thing he knew was that he was pulled away from the headmaster, and his body fell onto the floor. When he turned around he saw that it was Hagrid who had done it.

"Easy Remus, easy there…"

Lupin just glared at the half giant. Standing up once more he glared at the headmaster before swiftly running out of the Hall.

"Remus?" he heard someone call him as he bumped into someone at the door. However he did not stop. The person looked back at Dumbledore.

"Let him go Minerva."

"Albus, did you hear? Potter, he's…."

"Yes, it's on the front page of the prophet Minerva. In fact, the whole wizardry newspaper had been devoted to stories on the rise of the Dark Lord, the fall of the Ministry, Thomas, Black, Death Eaters and worldwide attacks." He said quite lamely. McGonagall nodded.

"Oh really? I really didn't think that was possible. I didn't see any newspaper reporters at the scene."

"Rita Skeeter," The deputy headmistresses narrowed her eyes.

"Though I thought Ms. Granger had solved that problem." His eyes swiftly swept over the room, but strangely enough he could not find her.

"Where did Hermione go?"

"What?"

"She was right here." His voice trailed off as he suddenly felt the letter which he still held but ignored burst open.

Three shadowy figures emerged from inside the letter. At first it was a blur but then they materialized into three distinctively recognizable shadowy figures. Immediately screams echoed throughout the room as panic took shape.

"So, did you think you can avoid me forever?" The snake like man asked. "Did you really think that by not opening the letter you can simply ignore it? Did you think you could ignore both me and the truth?"

* * *

"Professor! Professor!" Hermione called as she tried to catch up with Remus. The man ignored her and proceeded into the Forbidden Forest quickly disappearing from sight. Hermione sighed and halted in front of the forest. Standing there for a few minutes she finally found the courage to find the man, to stop him from doing something stupid for the failed attempt to hurt Dumbledore showed that he was quite unstable.

"Professor, where are you? Professor Lupin?" She asked tentatively as she ventured deeper into the forest. She was met by nothing except for an eerier silence. Deeper and deeper she went until she suddenly halted. For a time now she felt that she was being watched but couldn't find who or what it was that was watching her. Standing extremely still she listened. It was then that she heard it, the sound of a twitch snapping. Spinning around she came face to face with Harry.

* * *

Dozens of spells erupted at once all aiming at the three shadowy figures in the room. In an instant more then half of the room laid dead, injured, or stunned.

"It's no use you know, after all, we're only a living memory." The man standing behind the teen on the left side and had his right hand rested on the boy's right shoulder said.

"Similar to what the youngest Weasley went through" finished the snake like man who stood behind the teen on the right side, his left hand rested on the boy's left shoulder.

"Cease the spells." Dumbledore spoke up. The firing stopped, but no one lowered his or her wand. All was alert at the current situation.

"Tom, Thomas and Sirius" the headmaster acknowledged softly, his eyes traveling from one to another.

"Dumbledore, McGonagall, Moody…" and so on until Voldemort finished naming all the adults which were currently inside the Great Hall. "and Snape…." the man paused. "You will pay….."

"Mas—" Snape began, falling onto bended knees only to stop when he saw Black glare at him.

"What do you want?" Dumbledore asked smoothly as though he was talking to an old friend.

"Not much" Thomas began. "Just here to give you a list of the people we've taken as prisoners. Just to let you know that Hogwarts is the only remaining non dark structure standing. The Minister has fallen…"

"I have already been informed."

"And for you to kindly return the boy's wand…." Black finished. Despite the tense atmosphere, some manage to snort and roll their eyes at that.

"Ah yes, but I'm afraid you're a little too late." Dumbledore said suddenly locking eyes with the youngest shadow. He watched amused as Thomas' body shook, slightly but did not fall onto the ground as the two older men held him firmly from behind.

"Afraid to look directly at me Thomas? Afraid of me? If you didn't have Tom nor Black to lean on wouldn't you be recoiling at my feet now, begging for mercy?"

The staff looked at the headmaster, then back at the intruders.

"Well luckily I do. I do have a father, a godfather, a lover…." He was looking directly at Cho, who took one look at him and then turned away. "Friends, power, fame and glory but with the added bonus of not having the ridicule from the wizardry world."

"And so that is why you crossed over?"

"Funny that you should ask that, you know perfectly well why I crossed. It was because of you."

* * *

Hermione jumped back a couple of steps so that there was some distance between her and the traitor.

"Why aren't you happy to see me? Aren't you happy to see the dear old savior of the world?" Harry said in a mocking sense. He opened his arms in the gesture of a hug and took a step closer.

"You know I'm not armed nor would I bite, though I do growl and hiss." Harry laughed softly. He took another step forward causing the witch to back off.

"Stay away from me Potter, stay away from me .or else, or else…" she said, while pointing her wand at him.

"Or else what Mudblood?" he sneered. He took another step closer. "No one knows you're here with me. No one else knows that I'm here."

"Professor Dumbledore, Professor Dumbledore…"

"Dumbledore? I don't think so. You should be bending down on your knees, kissing his robes and muttering 'milord, milord' after all he is the new Light Lord."

Hermione just stared at the teen before her not knowing what to say and how to describe what was happening. She didn't know what to do but watch the teen advance closer. Her mind was blank and her hand was shaking.

_So this is what it is like. So this is how the last minutes of life is like. Useless books! I swear if I get out of this alive, I'll burn all the books there are. It's all different then how it's described in writing. There's no prevention._

"Hermione, my Hermione, you made the same mistake that Ron did. The exact same one. You should have stayed inside of Hogwarts, should have stayed next to Dumbledore 24/7 so that the almighty man may protect you though I don't see the difference from it" the dark wizard continued quietly, advancing closer and closer to her.

All of a sudden, Hermione felt her senses return to her. Spinning around, she ran blindly into the forest.

"You can run but you can't hide."

Hermione dashed deeper into the forest. She heard distinctively the footsteps that were chasing her. Without warning, she felt herself being pinned onto the ground.

"Gotcha," came the voice before a loud growl followed it. Before she knew it, the teen had transformed and large shiny white teeth sunk into her piercing her through her rib cage.

"HARRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HARRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

"Drop Her- my-own-nee. Drop her slowly and face me."

* * *

A long silence followed. Thomas' last words were still echoing through the room.

"It was because of you. It was because of you. It was because of you, because of you, because of you, you, you, you………." and then the words trailed off completely.

"So you've come to taunt him" Mad-Eye said softly. "Taunt the old man who raised you, who took care of you, who guided you……"

"He did nothing for me! Thomas snarled. "And no Mad-Eye, I did not only come to taunt him. If I recall correctly I think we're here to name a few of the prisoners that we took, am I right Sirius?"

"Yes" Black then took out a scroll from beneath his robes. He unraveled it and began reading the names.

"Kingsley, Wood, Delacour, Delacour, Ollivander, Tonks, Weasley, Weasley, Weasley, Weasley, Maxime, Diggory, Diggory, the whole Irish Quidditch team, the Bulgarian team, minus its seeker, Bell, Johnson, Bagman….." and continued on and on with the never ending list. "And that's about it, everyone else not on this list and not in this room is probably dead."

Thomas looked around the room for a reaction, but found none.

"And Sirius, I think you can add on Granger right about…." He seemed to be looking at what seemed to be a watch. "now…."

"HARRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! HARRY!!!!!!!!!!!!!! NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Hermione's shrill voice echoed throughout Hogwarts. Everyone froze. Her voice died down and it was followed by a growl from a beast. Voldemort muttered something about 'Mudblood' before bursting into a high cold pitch laugh.

"Soon the entire Wizardry and Mudblood world be mine!" With a puff of smoke, the three disappeared.

* * *

"Release de girl, release her."

The lion swirled around its teeth still sunk deeply into the girl's body. Standing before the lion with his wand pointed straight out was a 20 year old who was built muscularly with broad shoulders and a trim body.

"Viktor, Viktor help me, please……" Hermione pleaded weakly with her new found savior. The lion bit down harder causing her to scream. The 20 year old stepped closer and within the sunlight Viktor Krum's grim face emerged.

"Her…Her-me-nee." He whispered, before turning back to the gigantic lion. "Why, why don't you drop her Po—Riddle and we'll fight like a man…"

"Viktor, Viktor…" Hermione said softly, but stopped as she felt the teeth sink deeper. The lion didn't seem to pay much attention to Krum for it took one glance at him before running off.

"Viktor…."

The lion ran off deeper into the forest with Hermione yelling and Krum close behind.

"Stupfy!" Krum yelled but his spell missed and hit Hermione instead. Now that she was fatally injured and stun, the lion stood still and spat her out before turning to face the older teen.

"Hand over the girl. I'll let you go, just hand her over," Krum said. However the lion didn't pay attention to him. Instead it charged at him. Krum not knowing what to do just threw all sorts of endless spells which did not successfully hit the target. Instead the lion's swiftness overcame him and he soon felt those teeth sink into his own arms. Krum cried out in pain, as he tore himself away. He grasp on to his bloody arm with his left hand no longer able to hold his wand. The lion stepped closer and leapt up into mid air ready to pounce on his prey.

However that did not happen. The lion felt a spell hit him from behind and he came crashing onto the floor. When the lion stood up on wobbly legs, it tried to find the source of the spell.

"Professor Lupin!" Hermione managed to squeak out surprising herself that she could still speak after being stunned.

"Run, run boy, I'll deal with him. Take Hermione and leave. .I'll deal with him."

Krum only nodded at the stranger. He tried to advance towards Hermione but the lion bounded over and growled at him.

"Alright then, have it your way." Remus remarked darkly to the lion. He then addressed Krum. "just get out and find Dumbledore."

Taking one last look Krum ran off to find Dumbledore.

"Harry, Harry….." Lupin spoke softly, his voice suddenly quite gentle. Hermioine looked quizzically at the professor, wondering how he would have known.

"Professor, be carefully. Harry will hurt you. He doesn't care anymore."

"Hermione, lie still and quit speaking. Even though you're stun, you can further injure yourself."

Lupin turned to face the lion.

"Did it hurt? Did I wound you badly?" He asked once he saw that his spell had wounded the lion enough that blood was rushing out from the sides. "Here, let me help you. I'll treat both you and Hermione." He paused as he took a step closer. "You don't want her to die, do you? Do you really not care?" He asked solemnly. "I don't know what might have driven you over and I won't ask you now but you're injured." He advanced closer. "I'll take you to Dumbledore and get Madame Promfy to heal you." The lion growled in protest. Lupin stretched out his hand but the lion swept it away. "Please Harry, trust me."

He watched as the lion transformed once more to human form.

"No, Remus, No, I won't go back to Dumbledore." Harry said before adding rather softly so that he was sure only the werewolf could hear. "I do trust you Remus."

"Harry…"

"I'm sorry but I won't go back."

"Harry…"

"Just let me go. Let me go." Once more Harry sounded as though he was pleading. "I told you before that I don't want to hurt you. Please Remus, don't force me. I don't want to hurt you, you understand? I don't want to hurt you. Don't force me!" Harry's desperate plea sounded very sincere and to some extent Lupin believed it, but damage had already been done.

"You've already hurt me Harry." Lupin said quietly. Harry froze at those words. Lupin continued, this time raising his voice. "More then any physical pain could ever do. You're my cub Harry and no parent would ever let their child go astray. It pains me more then anything to know that you rather find confront in the arms of the monster named Voldemort then the monster of a werewolf. If we're both monsters then what is it that Voldemort has that I do not? Am I not monster-ry enough?"

"Just stop!" Harry cried out. "Stop!" Somehow he couldn't take it that Remus was calling himself a monster, more then how he couldn't take it that Remus said he was in pain.

Lupin ignored him and continued on.

"I broke the night the Potters died. I never knew a broken man can break further. You have no idea how much you've touched my life, and you have no idea how much you've torn it apart. You have no idea how painful it is for me to stand here and brace myself to attack you,"

"Stop! Stop!" Harry yelled. "If you let me leave then…"

" when all I want to do is rush up and heal you, hold you, whisper comforting words to you, whisper that everything's all right and that no matter what happens I'll always be here for you because I love you and I care for you and that I can understand you, and therefore accept and forgive you."

A heavy silence fell between them. At last Harry was able to speak.

"Just let me leave with her, and I won't have to hurt you further."

"No Harry" Lupin said firmly. "A broken man can only break so much. A little more pain won't harm me any further."

"Please Remus, just let me leave with her."

"I'm sorry Harry, but you know I cannot do that." Lupin said sadly. "You're Voldemort's man now and if you persist to endorse the acts of evil, then you leave me with no choice then to attack you." Lupin brought up his wand and pointed it at Harry. "Wands at ready Harry."

* * *

Krum ran through the forest. He was starting to lose consciousness due to his wound. The amount of blood that seemed to be pouring out did not seem to cease. His vision was starting to blur.

Huff. He ran directly into a figure.

"Avada Kedavra…." He heard a voice said. However the curse was block.

"Please Mad-Eye, do watch were you point that wand." McGonagall said.

"Krum?" Snape added. "Viktor Krum?"

"Professor Dumbleodre, Professor Dumbledore!"

"Easy lad, calm down." Mad-Eye said, recovering from the sudden 'attack'.

"Dumbledore, Dumbledore…." He said, rushing to the headmaster.

"Yes, Mr. Krum?"

"Her-mi-o-ne, Hermy-nee…"

"Hermione?" McGonagall inquired.

"Yes, she vos attacked. She vos attacked."

"By what?"

"Gigantic lion, Potter, Gigantic Lion."

Snape's face frowned.

"It attacked her. She's hurt."

"Where?"

Krum pointed at the forbidden forest. "There, there. I tried to save her. I tried but I vos also attacked."He shoved his injured arm in front of him. "I vos attacked by Potter, animagus, gigantic lion." He said waving his uninjured arm in the air. "Then, then someone Hermy-nee called Professor Lupin, I think, showed up. He said to get you and he'll deal with it."

"Remus…." Dumbledore murmured. "Well Minerva take him to Poppy."

"But…"

"Go on…"

McGonagall only nodded. McGonagall gently led Krum back to Hogwarts.

"Well Mr. Krum, what a surprise to see you show up here."

"Drumstrang vos attacked."

"I thought you graduated."

"Yes but I stayed because its like my home, cos that's where I've known all my life."

"I see."

The two stopped talking once they were inside Hogwarts.

"Hey look, its Krum."

"Yes, that's Viktor Krum."

Whispers followed as Krum and McGonagall they entered the Great Hall.

"Yeah, what's he doing here?"

"Why is he here?"

* * *

Lupin threw a couple of curses at Harry. The curses weren't meant to hurt him, just enough to drive him away so that he could at least attend to Hermione's injuries, if not Harry's. Somehow, he knew that Harry wouldn't die from the injuries that he had caused. Lupin continued on with precise accuracy. Slowly he was growing angry. The boy didn't attack once nor was he shielding or protecting himself at all.

"Why don't you defend yourself? Why aren't you attacking me? You've already hurt me. You can hurt me more."

"I won't hurt you, even if I could, I won't."

"I know you can. Just because Dumbledore snapped your wand, it doesn't mean you don't have Dark Magic to stop me. Come on Harry! I want you to attack me. I want you to hurt me." Remus shouted. Somehow he felt that he would feel better if this battle wasn't one sided. Harry just shook his head.

Lupin was frustrated. He pocketed his wand, leapt up into the air, and transformed into the pure wolf.Harry too transformed into the lion. The wolf rushed up and delivered fatal blows, letting his anger out on the other. The wolf pinned the lion onto the floor, swiping him with claws. Not once, did the lion cry out, not once did the lion defend or attack back.

"Remus!" a voice called from behind. "You're killing him. Get off of him!" Snape yelled as he flung himself onto the wolf, and tried to pull him apart. The wolf ignored him for his front paws were clasped between the lion's neck, its nails, digging deeply into the skin.

"Get off!" Snape yelled, but was kicked back by the lion, which surprised him. He tried to advance forward, but the lion growled at him, which caused him to recoil.

"Remus!" Snape yelled helplessly as the wolf, continued to choke the lion. He ran up and again tried to pull them apart but found it impossible. Instead of helping the situation, he become part of it when both animals cooperated for the briefest moments to throw the Potion Master away, injuring the man for interfering. Now, Snape was heaving heavily as he collapsed next to Hermione.

Having drove the Potion Master away, the wolf continued to attack the lion. It's claws swiping onto the other. The lion didn't do anything. It just laid still accepting the attacks as if it was nothing. Frustrated, the wolf raised it's paw and swiped the lion directly at its face. This time the lion yelled out in pain as the claws priced through his skin.

"Stupfy!" A voice cried out.

"No!" Another voiced yelled right after the first. The lion's ears perked up. Using the energy he could muster, he threw the wolf off of him so that it landed a few feet away.

All movement froze. Everyone watched as the stunner spell issued out of the headmaster's wand. It went slowly taking its time until it hit directly onto the lion's chest. The lion twitched. They watched in awe as the lion's limbs thinned and the hair disappeared, and then it transformed back into its human form.

The wolf growled loudly, howling, as it rushed towards the boy.

_If that had been the killing curse then Harry would have…._

"Remus!" Snape yelled as he tried to sit up. The wolf abruptly halted as if torn between going to Harry and going to Snape. Slowly it walked up to the Potion Master. Snape held out a hand and placed it onto its head.

"Come closer." The wolf walked up, before burying his head in the Potion's Masters chest.

"Remus, hear me out alright." The Potion Master said softly, noting that all eyes were now on him and the wolf. He supposed it did kind of look suspicious, after all it was know throughout Hogwarts that none of the Marauders ever got along with Snape. It was common knowledge that theywere long time rivals. Slowly, the Potion Master took out the chain that Harry had given him last night.

"I've made up my mind. I know where my loyalties lie." Using both hands, he slipped the chain over the wolf's head so that now it dangled on him like a necklace.

"Harry wanted you to have this." There was a pause. "Just remember, Harry would never intentionally hurt you. He doesn't want to hurt you because he cares. It's hurting him more then you'll ever know." The wolf seemed to howl in protest but Snape cut him off. "Just remember…."

The wolf wanted to say something but Snape had already taken a hold of Hermione. She let out a shriek of surprise from the form of roughness that she was being handled.

Dumbledore, who by now was standing close to Harry's stunned body turned to where the shriek had come from.

"MORSMORDRE!" was yelled out, drawing his attention to the person who yelled it. He watched as vast green light issued from the Potion Master's wand before rising to form the Dark Mark. "MOSMODOR!" Another jet of green light issued, this time forming Thomas's Mark. "AVADA!" came last and this time green sparks rose into the air.

Though panic did not follow, terror, and surprise spread throughout the adults who were present. Almost all wands were now pointed at Snape, with only one or two that was instead pointed at the wolf.

"Snape, let Hermione go." Dumbledore said, while pointing his own wand at the man.

"No Dumbledore, I've had enough of you. I won't play the part of a spy anymore. I won't let you manipulate me anymore."

Dumbledore sighed.

"Let the girl go. Do you really think, do you really think that by handling over Ms. Granger to Tom that he'll welcome you back with open arms? You did betray him."

"No, no I'm afraid, I remain one of his most loyalist men."

Dumbledore ignored him.

"Do you really think it'll make up for the damage done?" He gestured behind him to the motionlessly teen.

"Master will decide once the boy's brought back."

"Oh? Do you really think Serveus that after declaring your loyalty to Tom in front of his greatest enemy that I'll let you walk away alive?"

Snape bit his lower lip.

"Even if you did call for reinforcements with the last spell." Dumbledore then eyed the wolf.

"And you Remus, did you cross just to follow Wormtail, Padfoot and Thomas' footsteps?" He said, while keeping his gaze on Snape.

"Leave Remus out of it Dumbledore. He's not a Death Eater, he doesn't carry any marks, he has nothing to do with me. He's just a close friend of mine"

"Oh really?"

"Yes. Besides, if he really is a Death Eater then shouldn't he be helping me?"

"Good point though it is not my duty to understand the mind of a beast."

"And wouldn't he make Sirius' job easier by moving away." Snape snapped.

"Eh?" Dumbledore asked. "Black?" the word seemed to be registering in the headmaster's mind. When it did, he noticed that the wolf was no longer standing next to Snape.

Dumbledore turned around, to find that Snape was telling the truth.

The wolf was standing protectively in front of Harry's body. An enormous, shaggy black dog was trying to make its way toward the boy. This time, instead of hurting Harry, the wolf was protecting him from the dog. Padfoot and Moony faced off, fighting to decide who would get to keep Harry. Each time Padfoot came close, Moony would use his claws to swipe at the other. Unlike his fight with Harry, Sirius actually fought back in which the dog took the upper hand.

"When did he appear? How did he appear without me sensing him?"

"Dark Magic. Voldemort probably taught him, himself. You did hear that Black is Volemort's right handed man?" Moody replied.

"Yes but how could Remus know?" the older man sighed. "And why would Snape let the chance slip away?"

"Remus, because Remus has nothing to do with it. They were friends and they did grow closer after Sirius supposedly died," Mad-Eye replied. "and true friends won't hurt the other, they'll be there for each other but they won't hurt the other. That's why Harry didn't hurt Remus and the way Sirius and Remus won't end up killing each other off."

By now, Padfoot had pinned Moony onto the floor. Padfoot was growling loudly as if to threaten the other not to interfere. Moony watched as a paw swiped across his face, purposely directly at the distance between them but not at him. A few more of these false swipes until the real one occurred, the real attack that actually hit its mark, landing on the wolf's stomach.

In a flash both Padfoot and Moony froze. A lion claw and a small growl came and went in a flash. Both thought they had imagined it but Moony knew better. Running down Padfoot's face was five long claw marks. Taking another look at Harry, he noticed that he was once again in the lion form.

_Why? Why? Harry, Thomas, why would you let me hurt you and Sirius and anyone else for the matter but not have them hurt me? Don't you realize that it hurts me more to be hurting you when you're not retaliating?_

The wolf's answer came quickly.

"_Lupin, no matter what happens I want you to know that I still care for you. I don't want you to get hurt…" _

"_I won't hurt you even if I could, I won't_."

"_Just remember Harry would never hurt you. He doesn't want to hurt you because he cares. It's hurting him more then you'll ever know."_

Those words continued to echo inside the wolf's head.

Padfoot cried out softly. He backed off a bit and then seemed to notice the locket which the wolf was wearing. Once more it cried out pleadingly for this to end. The wolf looked at the dog and then back at the lion and then again at the dog. Finally, Moony stepped aside so that he no longer blocked Padfoot's route to Harry. Instead he turned his back on the other, letting Padfoot come close to Harry.

Dumbledore stepped forward as he watched the sudden change. Padfoot was now heaving the injured lion onto his back. The headmaster came closer, however the wolf growled angrily at him, once again taking the protective stance. The other adults too tired to advance toward the dog but found it impossible, especially since Moony was not helping matters.

"Take care of him Black." Snape muttered. Taking a stronger hold of Hermione, he threw the girl towards the dog. Moony jumped up in the air and caught her. He placed her down.

"Remus!" Snape scolded. He looked from him to Padfoot and then to Hermione. The wolf howled making it clear that Hermione was to stay. Snape sighed.

"Alright then Black just take Harry and leave. Don't worry about me. I'll be fine."

Padfoot nodded.

"None of you, none of you are leaving here alive, especially not Riddle." Dumbledore said. He was now right in front of Moony, trying to get through but found it quite impossible to do so. Raising his wand he got ready to throw out a spell. The wolf saw his movement and quickly bit onto the wand before jerking it away from the headmaster. Now Dumbledore looked at Moony with narrowed eyes. The wolf place the wand between his front paws holding it down with both.

"Remus, give me back my wand." He muttered. The wolf ignored him. Instead he turned slightly around to face Padfoot. He howled once more. Padfoot replied softly. The two stared at each other for a moment, eyes connecting.

"Black, get out of here!" Snape yelled again. "What are you waiting for, full Moon?"

Padfoot snapped back with gritted teeth through the usage of animal speech.

"Go on, just go."

Padfoot gave what seemed to be a 'thanks' before turning around and dashing off, going deeper into the forbidden forest.


	17. Chapter 17

**Chapter 17**

Sirius mutters a few words under his breath, allowing the counter affect of the stunning spell to take proper effect.

"Harry, hang in there. I'll get us back alive." Black said. He hurried on deeper into the forest carrying his injured Godson.

"Sirius."

"Hmm?"

"I'll be ok."

"Of course you will be. I'll get you back alive." Harry nodded. Black hurried deeper into the forest so that there wasn't even any light though it was still early in the day. Finally he stopped at a clearing.

"Harry, you'll be ok here. I'll come back for you. .Just rest here for a bit ok?"

"What? Why?"

"I can't go back yet."

"Why?"

"I have some unfinished business to attend to." He gently place Harry down. "I'm going back. I won't, no, I can't forgive anyone for hurting you."

Understanding flashed in the teen's eyes. He reached out and grabbed his Godfather.

"No! No! You will not hurt Remus."

Sirius looked directly into the other's eyes.

"It's not him." He said carefully.

"You will not hurt Lupin. I won't allow it."

"Harry, I never said I'll hurt him."

"But you just said…."

"Harry, look at me and listen carefully."

The other nodded showing that he was listening.

"Remus and I share a very deep relationship. For the Mauarders it has always been one for all and all for one. It doesn't matter what side we're on—even if it's the opposite one. Even now I regret James' death. It wasn't meant to be, but it happened. The four of us—Moony, Wormtail, Padfoot and Prongs—are much closer then blood and bone. We've shared both the happiest and darkest times together. We've been through many obstacles and hardships, shared adventures and pranks, we shared everything. The point is that when we were young, the four of us made a pact. We swore that to our best abilities we would stand behind each other that we would be there for each other no matter what. It doesn't matter who we are and what each of us would become. What matters was that we'll risk anything for each other, including our live as long as one of us were in danger, the others would be there." Sirius finished quietly.

Harry listened softly.

"That's exactly what Moony said to me."

"It is his way of dealing with James' death though I am sure he means it."

"Yes he does. He stood up for me. He did more then that, he stood against Dumbledore in his own way."

"Yes exactly. Moony's expressions are in a sense weird. Remember Snape's worst memory?"

"Yes."

"Well he knew what was happening but he didn't stop us though he was a Prefect. He'll just let it happen."

"I know."

"He was like that for most of the pranks."

"Uh huh."

"And for James's death, it wasn't like he didn't know…."

"What?" Harry gasped, not believing what he was hearing.

"Its that he chose not to do anything about it. He might not have been the one to initiate the attack, but he did turn a blind eye upon the Potters."

"But…"

"We all made our own decisions. We either actively participated or pretended that we didn't know. Whatever the choice it was, we had to live with the consequences." By now Sirius was almost whispering.

"Harry, what matters are the choices that we make," he drew in some breath as he continued.

"That time Wormtail and I were both working for Voldemort. We choose to hand James over, therefore breaking our pact. Remus, he choose not to show up, choose not to appear and be there when James needed support the most. In a way, we all broke our pact."

"Ah…"

"You may say this is Remus' way of making it up, however it is quite impossible. You are different from James. However in the three of our hearts, you have kind of become him, became the man who replaced him."

Harry remained silent. He still wasn't sure where this conversation was leading.

"Harry, I cannot hurt Lupin, you can be assured that. To kill him would be like killing myself. James was a special case but even so on that fateful night, it felt as though a part of me had died." Black's voice trailed off.

"Hmm, but I thought you meant Remus when you said you won't let anyone hurt me." Harry said, trying to bring them back to the original topic.

"I meant Dumbledore, the Order and anyone else who may participate and become responsible for his death."

"Lupin is still alive."

"But how much longer?" The older man countered. "Lupin let us leave. He let me take you. He risked everything by taking a hold of Dumbledore's wand. He made a choice that could heavily cost him though I'm not sure he's ready to pay the price."

For a minute Harry did not seem to understand and then comprehension rushed through him.

"Oh God, .now Dumbledore might kill him for thinking that he's on the Dark side when he's not."

_Though I wish he was on our side. It would make things so much easier._

"Yes."

"We've got to go back Sirius, take me back. You can't stand against Dumbledore alone."

"No, I brought you here because your safety is my priority. Lupin knew what the consequences. If I didn't have a heart, we would be gone by now. Yet I cannot loose him. I've chosen to go back to him. Besides even if Lupin was alright, safe and sound, I still have to go back for Snape."

"Severus."

"Yes. He is one man that we cannot lose. He declared his loyalty towards Voldemort and he is one of the most loyalist men, it's no question that I have to get him out too."

Harry nodded.

"Besides though Severus and the Mauarders were on the complete opposites, we still had been though everything together. We might have teased him, we might have hurt him, but we all know even if it was only subconsciously that he was apart of us, a part that ruins deeply through us like blood and bone, though none of us would admit it. I think that's the reason why Severus and Remus got closer together this year. They were the only ones left for each other, the only ones who understood each other enough that they seemed to be like brothers."

Harry remained silent not knowing what to say.

Suddenly, a sheering pain overlaps both of them. It was brief but it left emptiness inside of them.

"Sirius what was that? Did you feel it?"

"Yes…."

"What do you think caused it?"

"I don't know but I have a feeling that one of them is in grave danger. Lupin or Snape." He paused.

_At least I hope its grave danger though I know its worst then that. Death, a loss of one of us, that's the pain we felt, that's the only thing that it could have been._

"It's their pain that we felt. It must be. I don't know how to explain this but we're connected very deeply….."

* * *

He was standing alone in his room when it had happened. A pain swept through him before disappearing completely. As it disappeared, it took with him a presence as if a part of him had died. Everyone had claimed him to be cold and heartless yet he too had emotions and what he just felt, the presence that left him though it was not his, took a part of him with it. 

_Rest in peace, I will avenge you're death my friend.

* * *

_

"I have to return, the sooner the better."

"Go, I'll take care of myself. I'm not hurt that bad."

Sirius looked a bit uneasy.

"Yes Black, why don't you go? I'll take young Master back to Master" a voice interrupted from a distance. Black furrowed as he turned to the voice. Standing about 50 feet away was a hooded Death Eater.

"Who the hell are you? How do I know you're not just some dude pretending to be a Death Eater to get Harry?"

"Because…." The man began. Harry looked at him.

"It's ok Sirius," the teen said. "It's just Karkaroff"

"Karkaroff? Harry, how do you know that?"

"Umm somehow I've kind of learned my father's ways of figuring out who's who."

"I see but still that man is not to be trusted. If you didn't know, he's been running and hiding ever since Master returned."

Harry gave him a skeptical look. "I know that…."

Black looked uneasy. He wasn't going to go and hand Harry over to some guy whom could not be considered loyal to Voldemort, even if it was a Death Eater.

"I don't trust you Karkaroff." He said as the man came forward and lowered his hood to confirm his identity.

"Oh really? Black you're starting to act like Moody."

"And I have good reason to do so!"

"And what would that be? After all I did aid in the takeover of Durmstrang."

Black rolled his eyes.

"You're beginning to sound a lot like Wormtail."

Karkaroff snorted.

"And what proof can you give me?"

"Master knows. He will reward me. Now I'll take Harry back and you can go on that rescue mission."

"Oh right whatever." Black sarcastically snapped back. "I just give you Harry and if you do return to Voldemort which I am assuming you will then having my Godson would just be the excuse to make it up all your wrongs..."

"Perhaps."

"Then I am afraid I cannot help you. You'll have to earn HIS forgiveness yourself. Why don't you go on the rescue mission instead?"

"Well if I could I wouldn't be here would I?" Karkaroff snapped. "If I could take on Dumbledore and the Order then I would have done so. I don't need to be taught that!"

"Except what? You're too afraid to die. Coward!"

"I do not have enough power to rescue either of them however you can Black, everyone knows you've be hand taught be Master himself."

"That's enough both of you!" Harry said weakly. "You're wasting time here. Snape and Lupin would probably be dead by now and if they are then both of you will pay."

The two mouths snapped shut at once.

"Sirius, Karkaroff does have a point."

"But…"

"Alright Karkaroff, I'll give you a chance. You take me back to father and I'll try to convince him to not hurt you at least that bad. .Sirius, you can go on that rescue mission."

Karkaroff gave what seemed like a 'haha I win' look to Black. Black chose to ignore it. The Durmstrang headmaster stepped forward and took Harry carefully into his arms.

"Sirius I'll be alright ok?"

Black looked a bit uneasy. Harry smiled at him. Black nodded.

"Ok then Harry. I'll be back soon." The man then turned his attention to Karkaroff. "You better not try and pull anything funny otherwise I'll kill you."

"Easy Black, I dare not hurt him."

* * *

Lupin stared aimlessly out of the window towards the Forbidden Forest. His mind was racing back to what had just happened earlier today. 

_Severus, I'm sorry, forgive me I didn't mean to do it. I had no choice. It was going to be one of us and I didn't want both of us to die. This way at least one of us survives, at least for now. Don't worry Severus I promise you that Harry won't end up dead nor in the hands of Dumbledore. I promise you my old friend. Rest in piece Severus…_

Flashback

"_Remus_ _give me back my wand." He muttered. The wolf ignored him. Instead he turned slightly around to face Padfoot. He howled once more. Padfoot replied softly. The two stared at each other for a moment, eyes connecting._

"_Black, get out of here!" Snape yelled again. "What are you waiting for, full Moon?" Padfoot snapped back with gritted teeth through the usage of animal speech. _

"_Go on, just go." _

_Padfoot_ _gave what seemed to be a 'thanks' before turning around and dashing off, going deeper into the forbidden forest. _

_Dumbledore waived his hands and the other adults began their chase after the two. _

"_Don't any of you dare take another step closer to them" Lupin said, transforming back to his human form. His hands gripped Dumbledore's wand tightly in a position where he could easily snap it. All movement stopped._

"_You're letting them leave. You're helping them!" Lupin glared at the Headmaster. _

"_I won't help the Dark. However in my eyes Black and Harry are my friends and to me it doesn't matter who's side they are on." There was a pause, "As of now I am still upon neutral ground. Either side seems quite appealing however I am refraining to decide and choose since I already have a target in mind." _

"_Oh? Where would that be?" _

"_There is no such thing as good and evil."_

_Dumbledore's eyes frowned for he quite clearly remembered a certain Riddle who had said it before. _

"_Hmm Remus, why are you wasting time with that man?_ _Just go and snap his wand After all, that is what he did to Harry, how he hurt Harry and now here's your chance to hurt him." Snape interrupted. "Remus listen to me, Dumbeldore's worst then Master. He'll do anything to get what he wants. He hurt Harry, he hurt Sirius, he let James and Lily die, he didn't seek out Wormtail, he didn't clear Black's name and he'll do the same to you, he'll hurt you." There was a pause. "Tell me what would Harry do if he finds out, when he finds out that you've been hurt? What do you think will happen if Harry lost you? He couldn't hurt you himself, .he couldn't let Sirius hurt you yet he let you harm him. I thought you said that Harry is the reason you're still around so why not join him? All you have to do is kill Dumbledore, snap his wand and we'll go back to the Dark Lord together. He will greet you with open arms." _

"_Lupin you know as well as I that there's nothing to be gained by joining Tom. Now, give me back my wand. I won't want to hurt you, you know I won't hurt you." Dumbledore continued, as he stepped closer. "I'll let you off. I'll pretend it didn't happen, that it wasn't you who let them leave but please Remus don't let Snape persuade you." _

"_He'll let you off Remus this time but what about another?"_

_Dumbledore ignored the Potion Master. _

"_If you turn Dark then how can you save Harry and Sirius? Remus please…." Dumbledore stretched out his hand. Lupin just stared at it. _

"_Don't take it Remus. Dumbledore's a god damn liar! He's a manipulating bastard. Harry figured it out, Sirius did too. Heck, eventually all your old friends did too." Snape then added softly, "if you noticed Remus, you're the only one left from the VPMWPV who's not dead yet but on the opposite side. We don't want to hurt you. You won't want what happened to James and Lily happen to you, would you? If Harry knew the truth and not half of it, then he'll break."_

_Lupin_ _seemed to be deep in thought. _

"_Remus he's lying. You've got us," Mad-Eye interrupted. "We'll be here to back you up." The man continued. Lupin glanced at the ex-auror who by now was tending to Hermione. _

"_That's right." Dumbledore confirmed. He pushed his own hand toward the man._

"_That's a downright lie!" Snape yelled. _

"_Snape!_ _Don't interrupt. I can't think. However I don't think there needs to be any thought any more. Dumbledore may have made some mistakes but everyone does. That's natural. Besides the old man's right, he's always right." There was a pause as Remus turned to face Snape, connecting eyes with him. _

'_Severus, I know you can read minds so I'll say this quickly before Dumbledore interferes. First off I don't agree with the old man. It's been a long time since I've agreed with him. He's too old and becoming paranoid. Secondly, I'll kill you so that at least I'll come out of this alive because if I go against him now we'll both be dead, you understand that right? Thirdly, I promise you my friend that I won't let Dumbledore lay his hands on the Harry…'_

_Snape_ _nodded slightly, his face remaining emotionless, so that no one, not even Dumbledore noticed any change._

'_You've made a valid argument in regards to the VPMWPV though I will suggest you do not get your hopes up. Damage has already been done, the group has long been destroyed. I have already made my decision and as difficult as it may appear to be for me, I will follow it.'_

'_One day you will come to terms with yourself.' Snape interrupted. 'I know you will and because I know you will, I shall allow you to kill me.'_

_Having said that, Snape nodded a second time._ _He looked at Lupin with a knowing smile as he awaited for his next great adventure to arrive. _

"_Goodbye traitor, Avada Kedavra!" Everyone's eyes widened a bi, not believing that it would end this way, with Lupin being the killer. The flash of light hit Snape. For a brief moment, Remus too felt as though his own flesh was being separated from his body. The wolf jerked back a bit. The pain left as quickly as it had come. _

_Silence followed afterwards. _

"_Remus."_

_Lupin looked back at Dumbledore who still had his hand out. Reaching out Dumbledore took the wand from Remus. _

"_Thank you." _

_Lupin only nodded, his eyes still resting on Snape while his mind was spinning with numerous thoughts. _

_The headmaster turned to look at the dead body. Snape's eyes were still open but there was no shock to it. On his lips was a cunning mysterious smile as if he had died with a secret. _

Flashback end

A hand touched his shoulder and he slightly recoiled back.

"Remus you made the right choice, you stood firm and you choose the winning side. I'm glad you didn't let him persuade you anymore then he has."

Remus cock his head to the side.

"I guess I should thank you for not switching sides even after all the ones who were your closes friends and family did. I know it's hard for you but I'm glad you stayed."

"Albus you don't understand."

"Hmm?'

"I think a part of myself died today. He wasn't a Mauarder…"

"No he wasn't….." the headmaster confirmed.

"However he was a part of us." Lupin paused. "It's hard to explain but Snape along with another..." An image flashed through the werewolf's mind. "as was James, Sirius, Peter, Lily and I we're closer then we seem to be and by killing him I felt as though a part of me died today. I actually felt the pain he felt, before he died."

"Does this have to do with what Snape mentioned about the VPMWPV? That was a term that I have not heard in a very long time. I've always thought that this group wasn't real, but now it seems to not be the case. Would you care to enlighten me?"

"I have no idea what he is speaking of."

Dumbledore narrowed his eyes, not quite believing the younger man.

"Sometimes, the right path is not the easiest one. There will be times when sacrifices shall be made for the bigger picture. You have made a gigantic sacrifice today, one that I am pleased of. It was the right path and I'm sure one day you'll fully realize it."

Lupin only grunted in response.

Dumbledore took the message that it was time to leave the man alone. The headmaster sighed before going to proceed to other matters.

* * *

He gently walked up to the teen. 

"Are you ok young Master?"

"Hmm yeah I'm fine. Why don't you get me back soon and then return to help Sirius?" Karkaroff ignored the comment. He seemed to be glancing around to see if there might have been other people. Harry looked at him a bit.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

The man turned around fully to study the surroundings.

"Potter are there any other Death Eater's here?"

Harry's eyes widened a bit before subconsciously feeling through his robes to touch a gallon shape coin.

"What did you say Karkaroff?"

"I said Pot—Riddle, are there any more Death Eater's near by?"

"No. Why?"

"Good because..." the man trailed off. He turned sharply around and pointed his wand at the boy, mutter some words before binds tightened themselves around the teen.

"I would have thought that you'll keep your guard up but I see that I was wrong. Stupidity seems to run in the family. I've outwitted both the Dark Lord and his son. You should have listened to Black when you had the chance but no you wouldn't and now I shall hand you over to Dumbledore."

Anger blazed in Harry.

"You traitor! I'll kill you once these binds are off." Concentrating hard Harry tried to use wand less magic but to his surprise was unable to do so.

"Surprised? You can't escape from me. This binding spell was of your father's tricks. I must admit it's quite useful." Karakroff laughed. "And now you shall pay for what your father has done, pay for the pain he has inflicted on the world, on the Death Eaters." There was a moments of silence. "No one will come to your rescue because the Riddle family has done too much damage for anyone to care."

"Oh really Karkaroff?" The elder Malfoy's voice rung out. It was then that Harry thanked his intuition to call for support after the Durmstrang headmaster's odd questions.

"Young Master called and now we reply. Unlike you we are loyal and will appear the moment we are called" Bella's voice continued. Then with a pop about a dozen Death Eaters appeared through the use of Portkeys.

"Now I suggest you hand over young Master and surrender." Wormtail said, taking a step forward. He flexed his silver metallic hand in the air.

"And if I don't." Karkaroff sneered. The three hooded figures stepped forward, distinguishing themselves as part of the higher rank.

"Not another step closer Malfoy, Lestrange, Petergrew. If any of you make another move then I'll kill him." Karkaroff demonstrated his threat by taking a hold of the boy and pointed his wand directly at the boy's throat.

"Avada Kedavra!"

* * *

Lupin thought he saw something out of the corner of his eyes. By now he had stopped grazing out of the window and instead had focused his attention on the headmaster who was questioning Krum. 

"And then, and then he vos, vos on their side, You-Know-Who's side just like that." Krum was saying. "Karkaroff he vos a Death Eater, he betrayed Durmstrang. He handed the whole school to him and only a day earlier, he vos saying how Durmstrang would stand up against the Dark Lord. He vos just like Potter, he just turned over when we needed him the most."

Dumbledore sighed. "Karkaroff will pay. Viktor, was there any others who escaped Tom's clutches?"

"I don't know sir .It was more then chaotic with everyone fighting for their lives. HIS supporters were everywhere. From what I heard Hogwarts vos still standing and so I came here. I don't know about everyone else. It's like it vos like everyone for themselves…."

There it happened again. Something caught the wolf's eyes, causing him to lose focus of what was being said. It was then that he heard a twig snap and his ears twitched.

"Lupin, Lupin." A tiny voice said. He looked around but didn't see anything in particular or anyone who would have addressed him.

"Lupin, it's me Black." Lupin jerked back a bit and all eyes landed on him for a brief moment. Lupin shrugged it off and the others returned their focus on the two speakers.

"I'm at the edge of the Forbidden Forest right now." The voice paused. "As a wolf, I know you would be able to see and hear me. You always had extraordinary senses." Black continued with praise. "You know I can see you too. I've got this Mudblood device that you look through it and you'll see far away." Black explained. "Binoculars I think that's what it's called."

This time Lupin, looked out of the window and used his eyes to scan for the other's whereabouts. He found Black instantly.

The werewolf turned, coughed a bit, and said "Dumbledore."

"No, no, please Lupin don't report me, don't please, please don't tell him."

"Yes Lupin?"

"Remus…." Black said a bit sharply.

"What is it?"

"Um…..um…there's, I think he's..."

"Yes Remus? Is there something that you'll like to tell me?"

Lupin's eyes darted from Dumbledore to the Forbidden Forest and then back at the man, catching a glimpse of Sirius with a pleading look.

"No…no….there isn't…."

Dumbledore raised his eyebrow.

"Go on Remus, there must be something wrong."

"Yes, yes there is something wrong. I think, I have a feeling, I guess I should say that I sense that he's, he's…." Lupin glance once more at the forest. This time Dumbledore followed his gaze. The headmaster thought he saw something but shrugged it off when he realized that it was nothing.

"Lupin don't tell him please .Harry's still here. He's still injured." Black's voice came once more, this time a bit anxious. "I just want to get Snape and yo-----Shit!"

Lupin watched as Black's face grimaced in what seemed like pain. The pair of Muggle device fell. Lupin then saw him pull up his sleeve and then show him the glowing mark.

"Shit! Harry's in danger. Damn it! I shouldn't have left him with Karkaroff, that bastard must be a traitor." Black said as if talking more to himself then to Lupin. Then, more to Lupin, he said "I have to go now. I'll get the two of you later. Just please don't tell Dumbledore. I don't want him involved because he'll make it more complicated. Harry might end up in the wrong hands and that can't happen." With that Black disappeared from Lupin's view.

Lupin stared out long and hard. Finally what was said began to register. The two wouldn't leave, didn't leave just because both he and Snape were still here. Now from what he heard from Black, they had been thinking about rescuing them but somehow it had gone wrong and now Harry was in danger. Danger Harry, Harry in danger seemed to only mean one thing for the man, to mean that it was also his job to save him.

"Lupin?" Dumbledore exclaimed. The man didn't reply, instead he pulled out his wand and once more made his way towards the Forbidden Forest.

"Well what's gotten into him?" McGonagall asked.

"There's something going on. He didn't say but lets just go and find out." Mad-Eye muttered before taking the lead in following the other.

* * *

"Avada Kedavra!" a gruff voice bellowed. Karkaroff curled into a ball, forced the teen on the floor before rolling to the side and therefore dodging the spell. 

"You! I thought you left!" Karkaroff spat at the approaching man.

"I did, however my Godson called and like the rest of these faithful Death Eaters, I have returned to protect him."

"Black." Malfoy greeted. Black ignored him, and stepped closer, regaining leadership of the group. He waived his hand and the dozen of Death Eaters spread out forming a tight gapless circle around him, the traitor, and his Godson.

"Master isn't pleased Karkaroff. You have betrayed him."

* * *

Lupin slowed down until finally he stopped. 

"Remus?" Dumbledore asked from behind. The wolf waived his hand to silence him.

"Master isn't pleased Karkaroff. You have betrayed him."

"Black." Moddy acknowledged. "and Karkaroff It sounds like Igor betrayed Voldemort. He must have did something…"

"Quiet." Lupin said as he took a step closer to the voices.

"Death Eaters." McGonagll said. "14 of them plus Harry which makes 15."

"Something isn't right." Dumbledore said. "We'll wait and see." The headmaster said, before taking a brief glace at Lupin, wondering how in the world the wolf could have known when he himself could not.

"You have betrayed my Lord and now I shall take the privilege of disposing you for him." Black was saying, his wand held steady at the man.

"Drop your wand Black. Drop it and tell all of them to do so." Karkaroff said, taking a hold of Harry. "I won't hesitate. I'll kill him here and now."

Black ignored the man.

"Empty threats won't work. If you dare hurt my Godson, I'll inflict more then a hundred times the damage done back on you."

"You won't dare attack as long as I have the boy."

"That's right, however you won't have the boy any longer!"

"Expelliarmus!" Black yelled, aiming for Karkaroff's wand.

Karkaroff deflected it. "My, my are we using second year spells Black? Did Azkaban soften you? You've finally lost touch."

Black ignored him. "Colloportus!"

"Protego!" The shield charm was supposed to deflect the curse however Black's spell had over powered him, causing the shielding shield to become useless.

"Impendimenta!"

"Stupefy!"

"Protego!" Black yelled, setting up a strong defense.

"Accio-Wand! Scourgify!" Black shouted. Pink soap bubbles streamed out of Karkaroff's mouth, choking the man.

"Hmm even the simplest spell can be harmful. I do not need to use a deadly unforgivable." Black said, taking a step forward. "Ah yes that reminds me."

"Crucio!"

Karkaroff seemed to open his mouth to yell but no words came out. The soap bubbles instead got clog up in his mouth. He choked and fell to the floor, his wand falling to ground beside him.

"Dumbledore aren't you going to stop them? It's obvious Igor needs help. From what we know there's been a sudden change and somehow Ha—Thomas ended up in the wrong hands and now Black's going try and get him back. Aren't you going help Albus?" McGonagall asked anxiously. The headmaster, didn't seem to hear her. He didn't reply though he did feel through his robes for a gallon.

Black stepped forward. Karkaroff reached for his wand but Black stepped on it.

"No. I don't think you'll want to do that Karkaroff." Black spoke softly. The man on the floor recoiled a bit. "That's right, wither in pain before me. You should have known not to betray Master. You should have known the consequences." Black kicked the man before him. "And now you shall pay for it."

"Go on Sirius kill him. He hurt me. You promised you'll kill anyone who hurts me." Harry spoke up. Sirius looked at him. He jerked his head back a bit and two Death Eaters came forward. Taking Harry gently, the men removed the teen from the traitor's grasp.

"AVADA KEDAVRA!" Black bellowed.

Everyone watched as the jet of green light whip out of Black's wand.

This time Dumbledore took action. Faster then the speed of light, faster then a blink of an eye, he cast a spell causing the gallon to transform into a gigantic statute of a lion before using another spell to turn it alive.

The lion galloped forward and came in between Karkaroff and the killing spell, causing it to save a life before shattering to pieces.

"What the fuck?" Black cursed a bit surprised that his spell failed.

"Dumbedore! It's Dumbledore!" Harry cried out.

Sure enough as the dust and debris died down, a lone figure stood before Black.

"You!" Black snarled. Dumbledore smiled grimly.

"Yes me." From behind the headmaster stood the few adult professors at least almost all of them. "You really didn't think you'd get away with this Black, did you, especially when it's on Hogwarts ground which I recall is my territory. You should have left with Riddle" the headmaster's eyes flicked onto Harry. "when you had the chance."

"Well you obviously don't know me. I won't leave my men in the hands of the enemy, especially those who are faithful and loyal to my lord. After all, unlike the Dark Lord, I still have a heart."

"Ah. I presume you mean Snape but I'm afraid you're a bit late. Remus killed him right after you left." There was a pause. "But I presume you knew that already. Perhaps you stayed for someone else?" Dumbledore flicked his eyes at Lupin who was standing directly behind Black.

"Leave Remus and Sirius out of this Albus, it's me you want." Harry cut in. Though he was still bound and on the floor, his voice showed no signs of fear easily regaining his authority. "Black's here to take orders as are the rest of them. Lupin is here out of his own free will. Whichever side he takes, whatever moves he will make has nothing to do with me or my father. Do I make myself clear?"

Dumbledore's eyes flicked on Harry.

"You are in no position to talk Mister Riddle. Tell me how can a bound man lead a rebellion against me?" A few of the Light Lord's followers snickered.

"Avery, Nott untie me. I shall duel this man."

"That would be impossible. It is more then a binding spell and so only a few skilled wizards would be able to unbind you." Karkaroff added, now that he had regained his senses from his narrow escape from death.

"Duel me? I'm afraid it will be more then a duel. Enemies never duel, enemies battle till the end." Dumbedore spoke softly.

"Eventually this will come to pass so why not have it now then later?"

Dumbledore pointed his wand at Harry. Instantly the Death Eaters enclosed around the teen, protecting and shielding him from the wand. Black took a step toward his former headmaster, his wand pointing straight ahead of him.

"You are unworthy of facing the royal, dark family. In my view you are nothing more then an ant. I must imagine you are nothing more then dust within milord's eyes." Black snarled. Dumbledore's fury flared.

"Bluffing won't work Black. I should be the one saying that. After all you are only a Death Eater" the statement came out calmly.

"Or am I? I Sirius Orion Black is more then a Death Eater, much more."

"You are nothing more then a henchman."

The Grim growled.

"You may be the third in command but you are nothing compared to me."

"We shall see. I alone shall take the credit of delivering your head to my Master."

Dumbledore scoffed. "And I shall take the pleasure of ridding all of you from this world. The Light shall conquer the Dark just as good will always conquer evil!"

"Avada Kedavra!"

Dumbledore dodged the flash of green light before returning one of his own.

"Crucio! Crucio! Imperio! Crucio! Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra!" Black cried out as he threw countless unforgivable curses at the man.

"One, two, three, .four, let's see how many charges I can place against you Black."

Dumbledore formed a dome around himself, letting the spells hit and then repel itself. Only when the killing curse was used did he block it with a solid transfigured item.

Everyone watched a bit dazed at the battle. Sirius was fast but Dumbledore still seemed to be a step ahead of him. Even so both men's powers seemed fairly equal between each other. Black was able to stand his own while Dumbledore only seemed to have the slightest advantage, that is if there was one at all.

"You see Dumbledore, I wasn't bluffing for even I can stand as an equal to you. Of course both my Master and Godson can overpower you, there's no doubt about it!" Black said, as he dodged a couple of spells.

"Protego!" Black formed his own shield against the spells.

Now for a brief moment, the yelling of curses stopped as the previous cast ones rebounded on each shielding charm.

Black shot another spell which was countered by Dumbledore.

"Accio-wand!"

"Expelliarmus!"

Black sent the Furnunculus Curse while Dumbledore sent his own Jelly-Leg curse. The two collided in mid air.

"Curcio!" Dumbledore yelled.

"Avada Kedavra!" Black screamed in response.

The red and green spells hit the center orb of the pervious elementary spells combining them into one.

Everyone watched as the gigantic now silver orb hovered in air before it was suddenly hurled towards Black.

"Protego! Protego!" Black yelled the shield charm along with all other defensive spells and wards that he could think of. It was clear that the orb of spells would inevitability hit him.

So as predicted, it came at full force, blasting Black along with others, about half a dozen of misfortunate Death Eaters off their feet, sending them into the air and then all having them land either dead or ended up with detached body parts.

"Sirius!" Harry yelled out. "Sirius!" Harry yelled again, seeing that his Godfather was sprawled awkwardly on the floor. He was lying on his stomach. Though he was the only one whose body parts remained attached, his limbs twisted out of shape. Blood gushed out of open wounds throughout his body.

"Sirius!" Harry seemed to panic. "No, not Sirius! No, please, Sirius!" The teen felt his anger cursing through his body. "What the hell are you guys waiting for? Kill Dumbledore!" The command rang out.

Spells from both sides busted and blasted at each other. In the meantime, Harry tucked himself into a ball and rolled himself toward his Godfather.

"Sirius! Sirius! Don't leave me! God! Please don't be dead!"

Sirius gruffly moved his head upward and Harry saw his bloody face.

A spell hit the rock next to Harry as he nearly reached his Godfather who was still about 10 meters away. Another spell hit directly onto Sirius who grunted before binds strapped around him.

"He's staying." Lupin said, while he approached.

"Remus." Harry breathed as he watched his professor take another step closer before taking out a hand to grasp onto the man while using his other to remove the man's wand.

"Remus" Sirius also called out weakly. "Please." he muttered.

"Cease the spells!" Dumbledore yelled as he caught sight of the three. Both sides stopped as they too noticed Lupin grasping onto Black.

Remus stared at Harry, and then a Black.

"I killed Potter, you killed Snape, its even." Sirius said softly before chuckling to himself. "Who'll knew back then that that we'll end up this way, that the fate of the six of us will end up like this?"

Remus eyes seemed to grow wide a bit before regaining composure. Harry looked between the two.

"Who knew that we the VPMWPV would end up this way?"

Remus cut him off, with a stern look. "That's in the past Black, there is no more VPMWPV. Neither you nor Snape would be able to convince me of it. " Lupin said coldly, semi aware of how he was responding differently to the same topic that Snape had mentioned earlier today. "There never should have been any in the first place."

Dumbledore listened idly at them.

_Again the mention of the VPMWPV._ _I must find out what is it and why the Dark side keeps using it to try to persuade Lupin to join them._

As if to justify this, Lupin took out what seem like part of a crest. On it was crested a wolf. He held it out.

"It was destroyed just as the crest was."

"Yet you still kept your piece, just as we all kept ours."

Remus remained silent.

"I still have mine." Black paused. "It is, I believe, deep in our hearts, that the VPMWPV shall reform. I'm sure that is why Snape agreed to be killed in the first place. He knew the way I knew…"

"If it's your way of asking me to join Voldemort then forget it. As much as I hate to admit that I would very well side with you on that particular fact. However times have changed."

Uh hem. Dumbledore coughed, bringing both men back to reality.

"Remus!" the headmaster said sharply. Sirius looked sadly at Lupin.

"I'll let you kill me but no one else. I will not be taken by Dumbledore." Black heaved a sigh. "However my last request and I hope you will comply, is that you get Harry out of here. Do this for me, do this for the VPMW…."

"Stupfy!" A streak of light came out of nowhere hitting Black. Lupin turned to look angrily at Mad-Eye.

"I can deal with him Alastor." The werewolf said, his voice filled with hatred. "I will decide what happens to him. I shall decide his fate just as he did towards James."

Moody remained silent, gapping at the man. Remus turned to Harry.

"I'm letting you off one last time." He said slowly, surprising both sides. "but be warned Mister Riddle. The next time we meet, only one of us will emerge from the battle alive, only one." There was a pause. "Well get out of here before I change my mind."

"Sirius…" Harry muttered.

"Will remain. If you have a problem with that then come and claim him."

The Death Eaters raised their wands at Lupin. Harry gave a command and once more the Death Eaters lowered their wands.

"Very well you can take him After all he is just one more on the death list, it won't hurt." Harry paused. "Malfoy gather the wounded, get us out of here." Malfoy and the rest did so until they were all gathered together.

"I hope you take Remus's words to heart. For the next time we meet, only one shall emerge alive." Dumebldore said solemnly. Harry grunted.

"And I assure you Dumbledore, it shall be the Dark. You may have won this round but I will rebound, and inflict more then a hundred times the damage done today, right back at you." The teen snarled. The headmaster smiled faintly.

"Dumbledore are you just going to let them leave?" McGonagall asked anxiously as the group disappeared.

"Yes Minerva. We have already done enough damage for one day. Besides these confrontations aren't the real war, their only side attacks which will raise morale for the soldiers." The headmaster turned to look at Black. "Besides we've gained more then we can hope for."

* * *

**Author Note: **As I mentioned int chapter 1, the prequel, "The VPMWPV" is posted. Howevr I rather people don't read it until the end of this fic or at least until it has been revealed who or what the VPMWPV is. Of course feel free to do so, just be warned of spoilers. 


	18. Dumbledore's Hidden Power

**Chapter 18 Dumbledore's hidden power**

Pop! Pop! Pop! Rang throughout the empty hallway.

"Nott get the wounded healed. The rest of you go and get some rest."

"Yes" Nott replied.

"Malfoy find my father."

/No need./ Harry tilted his head to the side.

/Nagini./ He muttered. /Where's father?/

/He'ssss in the dungeonsssss as usual young Master./

/I see./

"Malfoy." Harry called and the man turned around to face him.

"Yes, young Master?"

"Nagini says father's in the dungeons, Go with Nagini and report to him."

"Yes."

"I'll be in my room, I do not think that I'll like anyone seeing me in this form."

"Quite agreeable." Malfoy bowed once, before following Nagini away.

"Bella, you won't mind taking me to my room would you? I don't think I can manage with these binds."

The women nodded.

"Ha! Damn Karkaroff! What kind of spell did he use?"

* * *

"Cruico!" The spell was thrown randomly at the prisoners. Some were only hit once by it, while others were hit by it more then a dozen times. 

"For every minute my son is away you will all pay." Voldemort hissed. "Cruico!" This time, the spell hit the person next to the man.

"Wormtail I have no patience! Go and find them."

"Yes, yes milord." The man croaked between the cries of pain.

At that moment the dungeon doors open. Without turning to look at who it was, Voldemort sent the Cruiciatus Curse behind him. Malfoy, screamed in pain as he withered on the floor.

"Mi….milord…." The man cried out between gasps of pain.

"My patience is thin Malfoy, where is Thomas?"

"He's….He's…." Voldemort released the spell for a moment, before turning around to face his servant.

/Nagini./ The serpent lord greeted his pet as the snake slithered up to him.

/Master/

/What happened?/

/I do not know. They just arrived and Harry seemed bounded and most were wounded. Neither Black nor Karkaroff nor Snape were with them./

/I see its all going with the plan. However the part about Black was unexpected./

Voldemort cleared his throat.

"Now which one of you shall pay?" The snake-like man asked as his ruby eyes scanned the room. "Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra!" Tons of killing cures were sent out at once. It seemed as though it was randomly sent however the killer knew exactly who to kill.

"Eventually you will all pay." Voldemort said to the shaking group. "As you can see the only ones who are remaining are the ones who actually had a direct connection with Harry." The group looked around and sure enough Voldemort was telling the truth.

In one cell Bill, Charlie, Ginny and Ron were inside. In the cell across for them was Arthur and Molly. All the other prisoners were sprawled dead across the floor. "and that isn't too many of you. You know the others who oppose me and are still alive, remain within Hogwarts."

"Malfoy have some fun but be sure to clean up this place afterwards. Wormtail come with me."

"Yes Master." came the reply from both men.

"You monster!" Bill threw an insult at the man.

"Easy Bill don't push it." Charlie whispered as he grabbed a hold of his brother.

"but he is! There's no point in denying it!"

"Cruico!" The spell from Malfoy came in a flash. Bill, screamed unable to control himself.

"That's enough! God Damn it! We never did anything to you in the first place!" Arthur yelled. He too received an unforgivable.

"You did nothing?" Voldemort muttered softly. "You hurt my boy and you say you did nothing!" The man took a glance at the prisoners, his eyes landing on Ginny briefly. She looked black at him before lowering her eyes and then nodding slightly. Her actions were not noticed among the others. Voldemort seemed to smile a bit before returning the nod.

* * *

Thomas rolled uncomfortably on his bed. He was frustrated. He had tried to use wand less magic more then once. However, he still could not get off the binds. What he could do with his magic, he had done already and that was to switch between his two forms. Earlier, he had sent Bella away to find his father since Malfoy seemed to have taken too long. 

The door squeaked open. Thomas managed to sit up.

"Father, Wormtail." He acknowledged. The two nodded. His father went up and sat next to him. Wormtail came up and plopped himself on a nearby chair. There was easiness in the atmosphere, one that couldn't be found when anyone else was around.

"Wormtail, are you alright? I didn't hurt you too much did I?" Voldemort asked, easing the tension more.

"Not at all Voldemort, I'm fine."

This had always been something that Thomas couldn't grasp. He had never understood why and how Voldemort could get along so well with Wormtail when they were alone. He was much friendlier and kinder then what everyone else would think. It was weird for Thomas for he did understand why Voldemort would be kind towards Black, but why would he be so towards Snape and Petergrew?

"I don't get it" Thomas muttered softly as Voldemort untied the binds with a spell. "How come I can't until it myself?"

"Because it was meant to keep a hold of you, .it seems that Karkaroff succeeded."

"Karkaroff! That traitor!" Thomas yelled as he shook off the soreness in his body. To the boy's surprise, Voldemort smiled.

"He isn't a traitor, I assure you he is one of my most trusted loyal servants."

"But he nearly handed me to Dumbledore!" The teen protested.

"No. He did his job well, he will be rewarded when he returns."

Thomas opened his mouth, but Voldemort silenced him.

"Tell me what happened to Snape?"

"I think, I think Moony killed him." He said quietly. "But it's an accident! I swear Moony didn't have a choice, please, please don't go after him." Thomas sounded a bit desperate. A hand reached out and touched his hand.

"I'm sure he didn't." Wormtail muttered, looking directly at him. "None of us, none of us ever meant for any of this to happen. They just do." The man sighed. "If only we could have been like we use to be."

Something flicked in Harry's eyes, as he remembered Sirius and Remus' conversation.

"That's what they said but I don't understand."

Voldemort looked directly at his son.

"About what Sirius and Remus said." He continued.

"The VPMWPV?" Voldemort asked softly as Wormtail took a glance at his Master, meeting his eyes briefly briefly before looking away and then started fidgeting with his metallic hand.

Thomas nodded.

"And what did Padfoot and Moony say about it? What was Moony's reaction?"

"I don't know. I don't know anything. I just heard them mention it. I don't understand anything."

"Of course you don't, it was before your time."

"It was our time." Wormtail added. "The bitter sweet memories of the past, yes, those were part of the happier times." He added with relish.

"And that is where it will stay. There is no more VPMWPV."

"That's what Moony muttered." Thomas added. "What or who is the VPMWPV?"

"Voldemort, Padfoot, Moony, Wormtail, Prongs and Vulpus." Wormtail stated automactially.

"What?" Thomas exclaimed. "It makes no sense!" There was a pause. "I thought you were mortal enemies!"

"We became enemies after we broke up, after the gang broke up, after we shattered."

"Why? How?"

"Personal matters that does not concern you."

"Anywasys it's just a group. We bascily left our own legacy at Hogwarts." Wormtail added smiling broadly. "Worst than the Mauarders!"

Voldemort glared at the other man.

"That's enough." Then towards Thomas he said. "It doesn't matter what the VPMWPV is and who it may have concerned. It's in the past, you understand? There is no point in brining it up."

"I…I…understand…" Thomas replied, sensing something unnatural in his father's tone, something that he never heard before.

"So Snape's dead?" Wormtail asked, changing the subject.

"Yes, killed by Remus but please don't go after him." There was a brief silence.

"And that is why Karkaroff is now currently at Hogwarts. We need a replacement for his absence. Vulpus has fallen and Karkaroff is the best suited for the job, one of the few who appear to have a cleared name in the world."

"Ah I see." Thomas muttered. He had heard 'Vulpus' being mentioned but decided not to ask, however having the feeling that it had meant Snape. "I should have know you were behind it. It was done really well, the Death Eaters actually fought like Karkaroff really betrayed you."

"That is because they were not told. How else would Dumbledore be convinced it's not actually a well cut plan? The only way to make it look real was that no one would be told. No one knows the truth besides us." He gestured at the other two.

"Wow! He really pulled it off then."

"Yes its very dangerous for one wrong move and its all over."

"True but I still think that it would have been better if you said something."

"Hmm why?"

"At least, at least, Sirius..."

"What about him?"

"He's probably dead now, he was nearly dead when I left him."

Voldemort's eyes darkened. "What? Who did this?" His father demanded.

"First it was Karkaroff when Sirius tried to get me backt, then Lupin, then Dumbledore and Lupin's got him now but he's probably dead."

"No he isn't." Both men replied at once.

"Huh? How do you know?"

"First off we are all connected deeper then words can explain. The VPMWPV thing." Wormtail responded.

"And because of this we would have felt his death."

Thomas looked skeptical.

"and also because unlike Snape, this is Black. I think deep down Moony knows his place even if he won't admit it outside." Voldemort souded sure of this.

This caused even more confusion toward Thomas but he didn't say anything.

"So do you think Sirius would return? Don't you think we should go back for him?"

"Not necessary. Don't worry Thomas, Sirius will be back and if he is not then Moony will pay." Voldemort spoke.

_We will see Moony. We shall see Remus John Lupin. We shall see what you do. Will you really kill Black? Would you really let Dumbledore hurt him? Yes, we shall see. We shall see who you really are.

* * *

_

He was crouched in the far corner of the cell, or actually inside the classroom of the Potion dungeons. Bleeding and shaking, he stared directly at the wall.

A key turned, and the cell door opened. Footsteps came from behind but he didn't trun around.

"Here Black, eat up." The Animagus turned around swiftly. With a sift motion he swiped the platter of food onto the floor. Taking both hands, he squeezed the neck of his intruder.

"Karkaroff! You will pay! I swear I'll kill you with my bare hands!" he tightened his grip, now choking the other. "That Muggle loving freak may have charmed this place so that I can't commit suicide, but it's not charmed so that I can't kill someone else." Black continued through gritted teeth.

"I….I…." Karkaroff began to choke.

"I'll kill you slowly and painfully." There was a pause. "The way that Mudblood lover promised me."

"and that's exactly what you'll be getting Mister Black." Dumbledore was now standing outside of the cell, his wand pointing directly at the man. "Now hand over Karkaroff or do you need to be reminded again?"

A pause as Sirius shivered slightly.

Flashback

_It was worst then Crucio. Worst then any other spell he ever used or encountered. All he knew was a jet of silver light shot out of the headmaster's wand before striking him. One spell, that was all it took, one spell to keep him hanging between life and death. He wanted to die then and there but couldn't. He wasn't alive either for his body didn't respond to his mind's commands. _

_"I have to admit Sirius. Killing you won't satisfy me." The words seemed distant, far away. He didn't give a damn what the headmaster said, all he cared about was the pain, or if it could be considered pain. He was burning and shivering as if he was thrown into lava and frozen in glaciers at the same time. Sharp pain caused by millions of tiny ant bite as well as dagger piercings could be fel, though he was sure that there was none. There were tons of other pains that he could not even begin to describe. It was a living hell. At least death would have been quick and quite welcoming, more then a thousand times better then this, whatever the headmaster had place on him. _

_"It hurts me more to cast it then you'll ever know." The headmaster continued, taking off the spell that he used. "Especially on you Sirius but you've given me no choice." _

_Sirius grunted, finding it the only reaction he could do. _

_"You've threaded down the wrong path and it's my duty to fix it." The headmaster said, as if he was the man's father. "The way a father should." _

'_'Thank God I'm not your son!' Sirius retorted, with his thoughts. 'I'm a Black and damn proud of it!'_

_Dumbledore seemed to have read his thoughts for anger flared in him. _

_'Hmph! Black!_ _The famous family for producing dark wizard's. I should have known. I should have known he wouldn't have been different. Why didn't I see it earlier? All Blacks are Syltherins just as all Weasleys are Gryffindors. I guess what took me by surprise was that he was not separate from James which in turn might have let me put my guard down. The simple fact that he was a Maurader, one who had fought tirelessly against Tom had been a good enough reason to trust him.'_

_Taking a step closer, the headmaster knelt down beside Black, forcing his eyes to look directly at his own blue eyes. _

_"It's not who we are but who we choose to be." With that the headmaster stood up, and left. He paused at the door. "Think about it Sirius." his voice trailed off. _

"_As I've told Tom earlier, there are many ways of destroying a man. Out of all of them, killing, taking away a life is the simplest. I'm sure you are very aware of that having tortured others." _

_This was followed by another pause before the headmaster turned and disappeared. _

Flashback end

Slowly, he released Karkaroff, who cautiously stepped back from the prisoner.

"What do you want?" Black drawled, growled, much like his other form. "Did you want to lecture me on another of those speeches of yours? It won't work." Black continued. "Or have you come to actually perform your speech?" he continued tauntingly.

"No." Dumbledore replied calmly before pocketing his wand. "Just checking on you that's all. I had a feeling you might try to kill."

"I'm not trying Dumbledore, I am killing." There was something in his tone of voice or was it the gleam in his eyes that the headmaster did not like.

Dumbledore studied the man slowly taking him in. Black looked terrible, he looked worst these past two days then all of the 13 years of Azkaban combined. There was no waxyness in his face, it was completely ruined. The handsome face had totally disappeared.

"Just get it over with Dumbledore." The words came out softly. "There is no point in keeping me alive. What are you afraid of? Are you afraid that you can't even use the killing curse?"

"I told you" came the old man's reply. "There are other ways of destroying a man. I'm quite satisfied now then I would have been if you were dead."

"There is nothing worst then death."

"Or is there?" came the retort, as the headmaster felt through his robes. Sirius backed up a bit, before standing still. A smile crept across the headmaster's lips.

"You see?"

Sirius did not reply.

_Is there such a thing that's worst then death. That spell that he had used. I wonder what it is. How could such a thing exist without me knowing it? Impossible…_

"Perhaps if you think back in time. Back to the end of last year, you will find your answer." Dumbledore replied knowingly. Shoving Karkaroff a bit, the two men left Black alone.

Sirius sat down, thinking hard. Finally his answer came.

_That's it. That's what must have been behind that door. The lock door in the Department of Mysteries! That must be it! The power must have come from there! The reason that Dumbledore could use it is because it's his power. His ultimate power! It's probably stronger then that and that is why he had to keep it locked up. That must have been his secret weapon. The prophecy must have been a distraction to split Voldemort and Thomas, to be used for them to kill each other off. The real weapon, the real power, must be either through the lock door or directly within Dumbledore himself!_

Sitting within his cell, Sirius continued to ponder, not knowing that he had hit Jackpot.


	19. Ther VPMWPV

**Chapter 19 VPMWPV**

He tap the other man's shoulder, causing him to jump up.

"Hey, Wormtail, its alright, it's just me." The man turned around.

"Ah, Thomas." He greeted. "What honor may I do for you today?" Thomas took a glance around, making sure they weren't being overheard.

"I want you to do me a favor."

"Of course, anything young Master."

"Even if that means going against my fathers wishes?"

Wormtial cringed slightly.

"I don't know about that, you know the consequences."

"Please?" Thomas asked. "I'll take on the whole burden."

The older man also glances around.

"Alright then, but what are you going to do?"

Thomas stepped closer. Though Wormtail was older, he was about a head shorter then the other, who now towered over him at 6'3.

"It's about Sirius." the teen began. Wormtail's eyebrow rose. "I don't know. I'm worried because father acts as though its nothing, like he doesn't care but I do and I want him back." Wormtail nodded. "and so can you come with me? Father said I can't go back to Hogwarts, at least not so soon. You're the only person here whom I can trust that won't go blabbing to him or preventing me from going even though no one besides him can stop me. Please for Sirius's sake, can you come with me?"

"Of course Thomas."

"Thank you"

The two quietly slipped out of the corridor. From a distance, in a nearby room, Voldemort listened intently to his son and Wormtail's conversation.

_Finally, at last you begin to make your move. Good Thomas. _

He had been watching his son for a while, wondering how he would handle this situation. The Dark Lord knew perfectly well, even if he was not going to admit it, that one day he would not be around. One day, it would be his son who would reign. All this was part of training, part of teaching his son without saying a word. Making him make his own actions, decisions, and build his own reputation. He knew that his time was running short, and his son's time was approaching. Yet, within this limited amount of time, he was going to teach his son everything. To do that his son had to learn that he could rely and trust no one. If he wanted something done, he had to do it himself.

_Thomas, you will learn on your own. I will guide you, but not help you. You must learn that things don't come easily. If you want Black back, then you must get him yourself. You'll have to start from chicken scratch. That's how I began and you shall be no different. Someday you will become powerful with a reputation worst then mine._

So the Dark Lord let his son leave without announcing himself. Successful or not, he would not interfere. If he was successful then Thomas can take pride in bragging that his father had nothing to do with it, that everything, every little step was planned by him. If not successful, then, well, Voldemort would decide then, either send in reinforcements, or show up himself, depending on the situation.

* * *

The cell door opened once more. A pair of footsteps approached.

"Get out, before I kill you." Black muttered, without turning around.

"Even an old friend?"cCame the wearily reply. Sirius turned to face his visitor, who was wearing a grim face.

"Ah, Remus." he went up and patted his friends back. "So you finally decided to visit me? What pleasure do I owe you? What brings you here? After all, you never visited an innocent man before."

There was a pause, as Remus conjured up a set of chairs and a table.

"And you brought food! You know, I've starving!" Moony placed down the tray that he was carrying.

"Hey, give me a hand would you?" The werewolf grab onto one side of the table while the Grim grabbed the other. With one motion they lifted it.

"A little more the left, push it back a bit, .hmm, there perfect." Moony kept saying as he settled himself down so that his back faced the cell door. Sirius took the seat across from him.

Sirius rummaged through the food, examining each one. Uh hem. The werewolf coughed, catching his friend's attention just as he was about to chow down everything.

"Yes?" Sirius asked. Moony used his left index finger and tapped the table but said no more. Sirius shrugged it off and went back to the food. Moony repeated the cough and then the tapping. Curious, Black traced his eyes to where Moony was tapping. His eyes immediately widened, before flashing up to meet the other man's gaze, giving him a questioning look.

* * *

They arrive through a protkey, landing softly in their animagus forms. Thomas also put on an invisibility charm for a gigantic snake would attract too much attention especially one larger then Nagini. The rat, followed closely behind as they made their way into the castle. Slithering and crawling silently, they searched for Sirius.

Suddenly from out of nowhere a hand picked up the rat, causing it to scrim. Thomas froze, his breath dramatically thinned.

"Lost are we?" The voice of Karkaroff broke the silence. "Well, I'll help you get to a rat hole. There's one in the Slytherin dungeons. You might find some friends there." Saying that, he place the rat back onto the floor. Though, he knew that Karkaroff couldn't see him, Thomas lowered his head in a sense of thanks to the man before heading off to find Sirius.

The two nearly collided into the wall as they made a sharp turn and came to a halt after appearing from a secret passage, which led them to the Slytherin dungeons, making it easier for them to avoid people, ghost, and the trouble of entering the password protected rooms. Standing only inches before them was Dumbledore. Luckily, the headmaster had not detected them for his attention seemed to be somewhere else.

Uh hem, caught the two intruders attention, who had transformed back to their human form. They looked passed Dumbledore to notice for the first time that Black and Lupin were sharing a meal.

* * *

Underneath Lupin's finger was a crest. On the center was a fox whom blinked back at the two, looking as though it was alive. Above this, was the letters 'Vulpus'. Below the figure, was the letters 'SS'. Black immediately recognized it, wondering where in world Lupin had obtained and why Lupin would have it.

"My friend, an old friend sent me this." Using his left hand, Remus tapped the word "Vulpus" while using his right to gesture to the tray of food. "The last time we met, we both agreed that I should visit you and at least give you the Butterbeer you deserve."

Once more he gestured at the goblet.

"It's his specialty." Remus continued, this time tapping a letter 'S', made an apostrophe and then pointed to the other 'S' and then the 'V.' Sirius stared intently, taking in the hints closely. Finally he understood, knew that the only reason that Remus would talk like this was because they were being monitored.

* * *

"My friend, an old friend sent me this." Dumbledore watched as Remus used his right hand to gesture at the food. From where he was hiding, the headmaster could see Sirius clearly, while only half of Lupin, the right half of him could be seen. The wolf's left side was out of his vision. Of course, the old man knew that he could move to a more convenient spot, but he wasn't going to take the risk. He knew that Sirius could see both Lupin and what was happening outside of the cell clearly.

"It's his specialty." Lupin continued.

_Hmm, Lupin's not talking straight. Did he plan this? Did he purposely place the table where it was? Did he sit with his back facing the outside purposely? Everyone knows you can't read a mind from the back of a head. Who knows what could be going on in the wolf's mind? Black and my eyes never seem to line up, making it hard to read his mind as well. Did they do this knowing that I had disadvantages at where I was? Are they communicating secretly? Or is all this just a coincidence?

* * *

_

A silence followed behind Lupin's lingering speech. The man bent forward and took a goblet of Butterbeer with his right hand. Using his left hand, he picked up the crest. Sirius also leaned forward. As their faces came until they were inches away, Lupin muttered a "This is the best I can do for you. You're on your own." With his left hand, he cautiously handed the crest to Sirius, his right placing down the Butterbeer.

"Oh by the way, do be careful." Lupin continued, sitting back on his chair. "We don't want you choking on it? I don't want to end up with the responsibility of killing you now even if it is accidentally."

"Hey you worry to much Moony. I won't choke on it. Nothing would happen, that is unless you put poison or some other drugs."

Lupin vigorously shook his head.

"Of course not old friend, why would I do that?"

Sirius nodded and took the Butterbeer. Taking it close to his lip, he used his tongue to feel out a few drops, just to be sure.

Instantly, his body began to relax. His thoughts and the consciousness of the room drifted away. A distance voice was talking but he could not depict it. Another goblet was held in front of him. He felt it being poured down, but he clamped his mouth shut.

"Easy Sirius, easy, the Butterbeer is normal, take a sip and you'll feel better."

Unwillingly, his mouth was jerked opened and the liquid was poured down. To his surprised, his mind instantly cleared and everything became normal once more. He could see and hear clearly.

"What is your name?" Sirius did not reply for a while, as he took in the surroundings, noting that Dumbledore had also entered the cell. Seeing no reply, the headmaster asked Remus.

"Do you think he needs more then three drops?" "I don't think so Albus. Veritaserum is strong and he did drink the entire goblet. Perhaps he didn't hear you the first time, or perhaps it didn't take into effect yet."

Sirius took the cue from Lupin, knowing that he was feed both the truth potion and the antidote. He sent a wave of unknown thanks toward his friend, wondering how he could get away with all this without the headmaster knowing.

"What is your name?" Dumbledore asked again.

Sirius put on dulled eyes, and in an emotionless robotic tone replied. "Sirius Orion Black"

"Are you a Death Eater?"

"No" came the immediate reply, surprising the headmaster.

"Let me rephrase this. Are you a supporter of the Dark Arts?"

"Yes."

"Do you work for Voldemort?"

"Yes"

"Then how can you not be a Death Eater? All his supporters are Death Eaters."

"Not all, not the special privileged ones."

"Explain."

"I am more then a Death Eater. Much more."

"What are you besides being his right hand man?"

"I am the Grim, Padfoot of the VPMWPV."

"What is the VPMWPV?" Dumbledore asked curiously, having always wondered what it is, especially since this group was only thought to be a rumor. Reums gave Sirius a squeeze on the shoulder, meaning that he didn't want any more to be said about it.

"That I cannot say." Sirius replied, taking the hint. "I will not elaborate on it." Sirius voice turned suddenly cold, though his eyes remained blank. Dumbledore thought that the man was fighting the potion.

"Very well." He paused. "How long have you've been working for Voldemort?"

"Do you mean Tom or Voldemort? Voldemort didn't emerge until nearly the end of our fifth year."

"Both."

"Tom Riddle, I met at Hogwarts at eleven. We've been friends since." Sirius turned slightly to Lupin, looking for a reaction, but found none.

"Without me, there would have been no such person as Voldemort." Sirius continued, proud at his achievement. "I was the one who helped him through the beginning stages of it all. I was the one that he shared everything with, his secrets even before he told Lily."

"Lily? Lily Evans?" Dumbledore's voice hitched.

"The one and the only."

"Explain. You mean Tom told her?"

"Yes, .haven't you guys ever wondered why Lily hated James? Well that's because Lily was Tom's girl from the very beginning. James had tried to take her away from him by any means so of course she would hate him for that."

Silence followed.

"The only reason she gave up on Tom was because he told her who he really was during our seventh year. Voldemort was nothing like the Tome that she knew and loved. James in the mean time had always tried to attract her to him. Not knowing were to run or who to turn to, she went to him and accepted him. Doesn't this also explain why Riddle and Potter never got along?"

"Maybe, but everyone knows that already, that Voldemort and James were enemies, the same way as you loathed Serverus though now I doubt that you really did."

"Serverus I did not loath. I was a Maruader and like the other three we had nothing better to do but to play pranks on him. I enjoyed doing that." There was a pause. "The VPMWPV aren't like that."

"Now once again you mention this VPMWPV group. Who were the rest of them?"

"You don't give up do you? Very well, the VPMWPV stood for Voldemort, Padfoot, Moony, Wormtail, Prongs,Vulpus."

There was a distinct groan from Remus. Dumbledore turn to eye the man, trying to search for a reaction. Finding none, he returned his attention to Black.

"Who is Vulpus?"

"Snape" there was another pause. "In case you're wondering about it let me explain.." Dumbledore nodded.

"Lily had always been Tom's girl since they laid their eyes on each other. James too, liked her very much but Lily never paid much attention to him and he was lucky when she did. I think it was during a Transfiguration lesson where they were paired together that they started to pay more attention to each other. Naturally, when Lily was not Tom's partner, I was, and if she was Tom's partner, then I would end up with James. Remus was paired with Snape and so most pranks happened between them. Wormtail, was, well, paired with everyone. It was during these times when all of us began to really know each other and become an unbreakable gang."

Dumbledore scratched his beard. He knew the Mauarder's were tight, but never noticed Snape, or Tom, who too fit in quite nicely.

"As time went on the VPMWPV was formed." Sirius looked directly at Remus, who looked uneasy. Padfoot could tell that memories were running through the other's head.

"With Lily around, Potter and Riddle were the two who didn't ever get along. Soon, this became a problem. As everything goes, this heated up really badly and well the group just split. Voldemort and Snape left the group and the Marauder's were formed. However, even though we split, I still remained close to both sides. As McGonagall would have said, 'You won't see one without the other' Its funny how no one noticed Tom and I were also inseparable. Well perhaps that was because the Maruarder's had too much attention, with our pranks, especially on Snape."

"I see." Dumebledore face Remus, regarding him wondering if he would remain loyal to him, especially since his friends were either dead or on the other side.

"Then after Hogwarts everything was pretty much the same as the world knows it. James and Lily ended up together. The Marauader's became infamous. Everyone of the VPMWPV made their own decisions, even if it meant splitting up, and choosing opposite sides." A pause. "Though in the end there is no light and dark, there is only power."

"I see but I still don't get it. Why did you have to switch as the Potter's secret keeper when you could have easily brought them to him?"

"because I'm Thomas' Godfather. If it had gone correctly, Wormtail would have been the one serving in Azkaban and I would have been able to take responsibility of Thomas. Besides, Voldemort wouldn't want his best man stuck in prison would he?"

"Ah no, of course not."

* * *

Thomas felt a tug on his sleeve. He turned slightly to Wormtail, annoyed at being bothered. He found it quite fascinating to find out what he couldn't find out from his father or Wormtail.

"Young Master, please this is not the place nor the time to listen about the VPMWPV. The more Sirius talks, the more Dumbledore knows. That can't happen no matter what. You're handing him weapons by letting him go on. I know in your heart you really want to know but please understand."

Thomas reluctantly nodded.

"Then you will tell me at home?"

"Yes."

Thomas thought a bit.

_What would be the best way to cause the most distraction? What could buy me time to get us all out of here?_

"Luna" Thomas whispered. He watched as a jet of moon light filled the room. Remus shivered as his transformation took place, right next to Dumbledore. The headmaster seemed taken aback a bit, wondering how moonlight could enter the dungeons when suddenly he realized that they were not alone.

A loud bang erupted and smoke and dust flared. Both Thomas and Wormtail rushed over to Black, grabbing onto him by his shoulders.

"We got to Apparate, its our only chance out." Thomas said. "We can leave Dumbledore to deal with the werewolf, or even better the werewolf to finish off Dumbledore."

"but we can't appar…." Sirius objected after recovering from the shock of seeing his godson at Hogwarts.

"Never know until we try." Before the dust cleared, the three had disappeared.


	20. Chapter 20

**Chapter 20**

"Hmm, I don't get it! Why would Dumbledore let Lupin visit Black, when in fact, Lupin's been acting quite odd?" Mad-Eye asked as he walked around with his wooden legs, supported by a pair of crutches.

"At least Dumbledore went with him." McGongall casually replied. "Besides, Remus is probably the only one that can get near that murderer now and expect to come out alive." The headmistress pointed to Karkaroff. "Look what he's done to his last visitor." Karkaroff glared at her, as she mentioned him.

"Too bad, Riddle destroyed my magical eye, otherwise I would know which side that wolf's actually on."

POP! POP! POP! Three loud pop's erupted. Mad-Eye immediately pulled out his wand, swung around on his wooden legs to face the direction that the sounds had come from.

"Shit!" Thomas spat out, as the three reappeared in the center of the Great Hall.

"Told you we can't apperate in or out of Hogwarts." Black muttered.

"Well guess we ought to fight our way out. Come on" Wormtail muttered, taking the lead to make use of his wand.

All movement seemed to have frozen in the Great Hall as they registered who had just appeared. Then, in one motion the hall became chaotic, both Professors and students were running around everywhere.

The three intruders took this chance to randomly throw curses at everyone, stunning, killing or putting them in intense pain.

The doors to the Great Hall suddenly burst open. No one paid attention to the man who had just entered. The headmaster seemed taken a back while as he took in the scene. Using his wand, he swung it upward and caused a huge bang. Heads instantly whirred around to see what had just happened which also calmed the Hall.

"Alastor." Dumbledore spoke quietly and calmly, as his eyes swept to the ex-Auror. "We have a problem. We've got a loose untamed werewolf and an escaped prisoner."

Mad-Eye rolled his one eye.

"I think I can see that Albus." He cleared his throat and gestured at the intruders. "and we've got some uninvited guest."

Dumbledore looked at where Moody was gesturing at, as if he hadn't noticed them before.

"Ah Mr. Riddle, Mr. Black, Mr. Pettigrew I see that none of you have read Hogwarts a History." Dumbledore spoke calmly as step by step he walked towards the three. "Or if you have, which I doubt, you have quite forgotten." Using his wand, the headmaster conjured the book which now he flipped through the pages.

"Here it is" The headmaster shoved the book in front of the teen's eyes. "It says clearly on page 482, and I quote:

_'No wizard, witch, of magic or muggle descents, can apparate or disaparate on Hogwarts grounds, no matter how powerful or powerless one may be'"_

The headmaster skimmed down a few lines.

_'If tried, one may find him or herself teleported directly to the center of an area where the most forces, stronghold, or the amount of people is gathered. The current headmaster or headmistress will be notified immediately and s/he must arrive at the scene of intrusion and shall thereby take control and order to defeat the intruders.'" _

Another pause.

"And that is written under 'Invasions, Hogwarts under attack.'" The headmaster gazed up at the last line, meeting Thomas' eyes. The teen flinched as intense pain jolted through him. He swayed back and forth before collapsing onto the floor, breathing heavily. The school watched in awe, quietly, first at how Dumbledore was teaching and then at Thomas' collapsed.

Thomas was now rolling on the floor as he tried to rid eye contact with the headmaster, bur found it quite impossible. Both Black and Pettigrew tried to approach Thomas, but was forced back, by the roomful of wands that were now pointing directly at them, daring them to move any closer to the boy.

"Thomas, Thomas, Thomas you made a fool out of yourself. First a failed mission and now withering beneath my feet in pain." Dumbledore spoke softly. "You may have gotten Black out, you may have set a werewolf loose, you may have killed tons, you may have killed half of the remaining members at Hogwarts today, but all shall be avenged now. I shall rightfully dispose of you." The headmaster took out his wand from his robes.

"You disappointed me Harry, you disappointed me greatly. After all these years, after all these years, it pains me to be the one to kill you yet I will do what's right. You took one wrong turn and now it has lead to this. You made one mistake, and it lead to this. After all these years it hurts me, it pains me to no end to see you turn your back on me. How I have hopped that this day would never come." The headmaster shut his eyes, and Thomas took the chance to stand up. "I've raised you Harry, I've raised you like a father. You were like a son to me, the son that I never had"

"Like a Father? You took away everything from me! Don't you dare..."

"I've made mistakes in the past and there were somethings that I shouldn't have done what I did. However like any father would"

"You're NOT my father!"

"Yes, I know I'm not but I would have been a better one then Tom. Where was Tom when you needed him the most?"

Thomas was silent for a while.

"I don't care where he was. I don't care who he is! I don't care if he's the darkest, foulest creature alive, he's my father and nothing, nothing can change that, not even James that is if he was alive."

"Harry I've known James Potter." Dumbledore muttered. "and you're everything like him He may not have been your father but you're everything like him." Dumbledore glanced at Black and Pettigrew. "and I think everyone who knew him and you would agree."

"He's nothing like James, he is everything but James." Wormtail spoke softly.

"and leave him out of it, let the dead rest in peace." Black added.

"There will be peace once you all die." The headmaster shot back. "Unless of course you come back to us in hopes of redemption. I'll gladly welcome all of you." As he said this, he held his left hand out to be shaken.

A shallow laugh broke out from Thomas. He glanced at his companions. Wormtial shook his head.

"Stand firm Thomas, we're with you till the end." Black spoke firmly.

"Thanks." He muttered. With his left hand he slapped away the extended arm. With his right hand out, he screamed "Avada Kedavra!"

Thomas, Black and Wormtail savored the shock faces of their audience.

"Why would I bend to your every will when I am more powerful then you?" Thomas sneered as the jet of green light shot towards the headmaster who was too speechless and stunned to move or defend himself.

"No Harry! Don't!" A figure pushed forth from the crowd, knocking down students and teachers a like. Flinging her arms, in front of her she stood before the headmaster. Tears were pouring down her eyes.

"Cho." Thomas took in a sharp breath. Sighing, disappointed, he waived his hand once more and another student from the sidelines was jerked forward. The second year boy, watched wide eyed, scared, as the killing curse hit him instead. Instantly, the boy died, falling backwards and landing without a sound.

"Cho." Thomas breathed out her name. "Get out."

"No, no."

"This has nothing to do with you, get out otherwise I'll kill you."

Cho took a step forward.

"No one will or can stop me from killing him, I ask you one more time to step aside. I swear…"

"Can you kill me? Can you really kill me?" She bravely took another step forward, unarmed.

"Miss. Chang for once the boy's right. I understand your intentions but I will not allow it." The headmaster spoke up, having now recovered. Cho, did not seem to have heard him, as she now stood before her lover. Taking one of his hand gently, she place them around her own neck. Gasps broke throughout the hall.

"If you want to kill Professor Dumbledore you've got to kill me first."

"Stupid girl! Foolish gir!" One of the professors yelled. "He's not Harry. He's not Harry Potter."

Cho swirled her neck to glare at the professor.

"He is Harry. He may be a Riddle, he maybe Voldemort's son, he may be Thomas but I love him. God damn it! I love him. It's not my fault. I can't help it, I love him!" Cho was now crying worst then she had last year when she was trying to recover from Cedric's death. "What's a name? What's a name! He's still the same. He's still as loving and caring, still the same."

"Cho its time you gave up on me." Thomas muttered, cold and emotionless though inside he was a mess. "A long time ago, what seemed to be a lifetime ago someone once taught me a lesson, a lesson which I will never forget." Thomas' eyes flicked over to Dumbledore, meeting it, holding himself against the pain as he held onto Cho for support. He struggled with the pain, knowing that he needed to say what he was going to say even if only it was to justify himself and his actions. If it would help then also justify everyone's actions and their sides that they now take.

"It is our choices. It's not who we are but who we choose to be." Thomas spoke the line with a magically magnitude voice. "I've chosen my path. I chose to walk in my father's steps. You're right Cho. Names don't mean a thing. Potter, or Riddle I will one day become the Dark Lord."


	21. Chapter 21

**Chapter 21**

Dumbledore inclined his head at his former pupil's speech. He could still remember that day clearly. The day after Tom Riddle had told Harry that they were spitting images of each other. It was the day which he, Dumbledore, told Harry that while he and Tom looked alike, they were very different from each other and that Harry "wasn't gong to be judged by who he was, but by who he chose to be and what actions he took". He had no idea that Harry had remembered all that!

"Let me clarify it." Thomas cleared his throat. "Barty Crouch, he was nothing like his father. In fact he was anything that the Minister was." A few people nodded. "You see, names don't be a thing. If I was James' son, a Potter, I would still have chosen the path that I did."

"No Harry you're wrong. You're not Vo---Volde---Voldemort." Cho sobbed. "You have a heart. You have emotions."

"Cho give it up." To say that he meant it he squeezed his hand. Claws formed and dug softly into her skin. "I'm not human. I am incapable of human emotions." He released the girl's neck and let her see the blood on his claws. "I can kill you without feeling anything anymore. You're just one more death on my account."

"That's not true Harry. God damn it!" She was now furiously shaking his shoulders. "If you didn't love me then why did you save me at Qudditch?"

"I pitted you plus it gave me less suspicion after the Creevy's deaths "

"Then what was the letter for?" She held out her left hand to show a ring. "What was this for?" He took the hand and held onto it.

"You know perfectly well. You're betrothed to the Dark Lord. You're engaged to me, Thomas Jerry Reapt Riddle, and I humbly asked for your hand in marriage. I think I made myself quite clear."

Cho was now shaking. All eyes fell on the girl for her reaction.

"Cho…no…" came Dumbledore's voice, both strict and strong.

"No…." Cho spoke softly. "No…." she cleared her voice as she repeated the decision. There was a relieved silence as the audience caught Cho's soft reply. "I love Harry. I don't love Thomas. Harry I love you, why can't you come back? WHY??? Why! Why did you even cross over in the first place?"

"Dumbledore. It was Dumbledore. He's the one that drove me to my limits until I finally snapped." Thomas replied. "You disappoint me Cho." Thomas brought them back to the main subject. "But no matter I can always find a replacement. It's not that hard being all Dark and powerful."

Cho looked at him skeptically at the announcement, wondering if he could really do that. Thomas seemed to have read her mind for he bent closer and whispered into her ear.

"The youngest Weasley idolizes me." He watched as her eyes widened in shock but dimmed in jealousy. He smirked at that. "Jealous?" He ran his fingers through her hair. "But no one can ever replace you, too bad you rejected my offer and so now I must kill you."

Thomas took a step forward. With one hand he removed the ring. With a toss of his hand, he flung it to Black, who caught it.

"It's yours now Sirius, be sure you wear it." Sirius nodded wondering but knowing better then to ask Thomas why he was the one given it.

Thomas turned back to Cho.

"Good bye Cho." Gripping her tightly by her neck he turned to face Dumbledore.

"She saved your life Albus, now will you do the same for her?" Thomas pondered out loud.

"She will be a great loss but I will not step forward to exchange my life for hers." The headmaster spoke firmly. "I cannot die now, I am the pillar of the Light. Sacrifices must be made for the Greater Good."

"So…So…" Thomas raised his voice. "Did you hear that? Every single one of you? Your precious Albus Dumbledore is a greedy git. His life, his survival is his priority. He'll send every one of you to death without hesitating as long as he emerges unharmed!" Whispers spread quickly around the hall. It was hard not to believe. Dumbledore indeed looked like a selfish person.

"It's the big picture that counts. In a game of chess pawns must be sacrificed for the bigger picture.." Dumbledore tried to explain.

"Funny how you compare this to chess." Thomas sneered.

"It is chess between you and me. Voldemort isn't my concern."

"Pawns so Cho is only a pawn. Those who fight in and out, fight on the front line who actually do fight are nothing more then pawns to you? Then that must mean that the Order, the Ministry, the Life Feeders are the second line of defense. All these people fight while you yourself sit back and relax enjoying the life of a king."

"Tom lives in that fashion."

"No! You're wrong Albus. You're fucking wrong! Voldemort isn't like that. You're the power hungry one. You're the one who's living a life of luxury! Voldemort works hard. He had to build from scratch. He began with nothing. He had to make his way up the ladder. He made his own reputation. He gained his own supporters." Thomas paused. "He's at where he is now because he worked for it! You, you on the other hand had everything and everyone and all the qualities necessary to become a Lord!" The teen spat. "My father has every damn right to be proud of where he stands now! He's got every right to be where he stands now in society. You will never be the Lord. You will never be like my father."

"And that's good news, isn't it? There isn't another Tom running around murdering innocent people is great news!"

Thomas laughed harshly.

"Without my father the world will crumble. Without Voldemort in the world there would be no order, no rules, and no standards. You as well as everyone else know it so why deny the truth?"

"Because it isn't the truth. There's something that Tom lacks, something like a heart, a soul, feelings, basic human emotions. A world cannot survive in darkness."

Thomas laughed again.

"I think you got it all messed up Dumbledore." The teen whispered as his laughter died down. "You're the one without anything, any of those that you just mentioned. Voldemort does have a heart. He does care. He's not that heartless. Unlike you he won't leave his most loyal men to die. We came back for Snape, we came back for Sirius, and will come back for any others." Dumbledore raised an eyebrow. "There's something that Voldemort has that you don't have" Dumbledore snorted. "And that's trust, loyalty, friendship and companionship. He may be reckless, he may be harsh, he may appear to be unforgiving and cruel, yet he will do something that I've never seen you do before."

"And what may that be?" The headmaster snapped back.

"He stands up for all those that support him. He may loathe them, and hate them, but he's there for them when they need it the most. He breaks into Azkaban to free the Death Eaters from the torture and pain. He rescues his Death Eaters from Aurors and saves their lives. He stands up for himself and his work. He doesn't hide behind his Death Eaters during battles. He doesn't let any of them do all the dirty work." Dumbledore's eyes flashed menacingly as his aurora grew. "And that is why, that is why Voldemort has supporters, has those who idolize him. He never deserted his men, he never turned his back on them when they needed him the most and that is why they do the same for him." Thomas paused. "And you, Dumbledore, you'll stand here and watch as I kill Cho? Can you really do that? Can you really turn your back on someone who saved your life? Can you do something that even the one who the world calls the darkest, foulest creature in existence cannot? Are you that selfish and inhuman?"

"Yes, I can. For the greater purpose I can."

"Hmm."

"But you cannot, can you Thomas? You can't kill for the bigger picture can you Thomas? You've been threatening to kill the girl for sometime now and you still haven't done so, so why don't I help you?" Dumbledore stretched out his wand. "Avada Kedavra!" The audience watched as the deadly light emitted from the headmaster's wand, heading directly towards Cho. However at the very last minute, it made a severe curve and darted toward Thomas' chest. Thomas didn't even look surprise.

"Is that the best you could do Albus?" He got ready to step to the side when a figure covered him. "Cho,you idiot!"

"Harry I…I…. I still love you just the way you are. Do you love me…love…. me…Har…" She didn't finish, for the light hit her directly onto her back. She didn't scream but her body jerked violently before falling onto the pair of open arms. Thomas stood frozen as did everyone else. Now every pair of eyes were directly at either Dumbledore or Thomas, not believing that the headmaster actually killed his very savior and at the same time at Thomas, searching for a reaction.

A hand reached out and touched Thomas' shoulder.

"I'm sorry." Black muttered, jerking his head toward the dead body. Thomas didn't seem to have heard him. He swung the body onto his back.

"Padfoot and Wormtail good luck."

With that, Thomas raised his hands above his head, casting what seemed to be circles, concentrating his aurora into his palm.

"I'm warning you now, let us leave."

"No" The headmaster firmly replied. "Not one of you is leaving this place alive." Having said that, both McGonagall and Moody took their places by the grand doors which was the only exit.

"You give me no choice Albus. In the end it is you who has lost.." Having said that, Thomas released his aura of concentrated energy. Mad-Eye and the headmistress were expecting it to head towards them since the entrance/exit was the weakest point in the room. Instead the energy didn't come towards them. It flew across to the opposite end where the most gathered, where innocent students were standing. They screamed and it sounded like one big wail before silence resumed. The ball of energy blasted them along with the back wall to dust. What use to be an enchanted wall was completely gone.

Then from the silence came a high, cold pitch laugh. Thomas was laughing insanely as two pairs of hands reached out from behind, slipped under his armpit and held onto him.

"Dumbledore! I asked you kindly but you're as stubborn as an elephant. Now you must pay the price. Innocent lives have been lost because of that damn Gryffindor pride you got!" Thomas voice trailed off as Black and Pettigrew took the chance to get out of the hall.

"After them!" Dumbledore ordered, taking the lead, knowing that no one beside himself had a fighting chance against either one of them. "No matter what happens don't let any one of them get away. Stay together. Don't let them corner you alone!" Those who remained fit to walk leapt into action, surging through the newly made hole which only seconds ago had been the enchanted wall.

"Alastor, Minerva comes with me."

"Of course."

"Poppy if you could attend to the wounded." Madam Pomfry rolled her eyes, knowing well what she had to do. The headmaster didn't need to hear a reply to know his request would be met.

"Of course Albus." She said to the disappearing trio.

* * *

"Thomas, Thomas quiet down." Wormtail squeaked, as the teen was both laughing and crying at the same time. The three of them were sitting on the floor, a few corridors away from the hall.

"Here I'll Portkey us out." Black muttered.

"No" Thomas replied, almost immediately. "He killed her. I'll kill him."

"Not now Thom…" The man did not finish as two people appeared behind the corridor.

"There they are! There they are!" One of them pointed his wand towards them but did not step any closer.

"Hello Davis." Thomas greeted. "And you Conner." He wondered briefly how Cho's ex-boyfriends could be the first that he had to confront. "Did you come for the girl or for us?" Thomas sneered.

The two did not have time to reply as two killing cures were sent from the two men at Thomas's side. Neither made a sound as they hit the stone cold floor.

"Awe and I was going to have some fun with them too." Thomas whined playfully. "Now that's not fun anymore."

"Torterus paines!" A voice interrupted from behind. Black immediately jumped up as he recognized the curse. The silver light blasted onto him instead of his Godson. Sirius immediately fell to the floor screaming and rolling in pain. Once more he had been hit by Dumbledore's hidden power.

"Sirius! Sirius!" Thomas yelled.

"Peter get him out of here!" Sirius managed to cry out through the pain and agony. "This won't kill me. Get him out."

Mad-Eye limped forward, throwing curses at the two, forcing them to retreat.

"Sirius! Sirius!" Wormtail managed to grab the teen as they were forced to leave the other behind. They watched as Dumbledore held him down while McGonagall bound him and took the wand away.

"Minerva you stay here. I must move on."

"Crucio! Crucio! Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra!" Mad-Eye yelled, dashing after the two. Dumbledore followed closely behind sending his own curses at them.

Thomas and Wormtail came to a halt as Flitwick and Hagrid appeared with one floating while the other stood out like the giant that he was.

"Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra!" Thomas threw the curses at the two who were blocking their way. Both pair of eyes widened and dimmed before life escaped them.

"Torterus paines!" Dumbldore bellowed again and again. Thomas felt more then saw the figure next to him stumble as the spell hit him. Like Sirius, Wormtail yelled in pain and agony as he entered into a stage worst then hell. The teen retreated a few steps as he tried to heave the man away from the curse.

"Don't worry about me just get out please." Wormtail shriek.

"Avada Kedavra! Avada Kedavra!"

Thomas moved his body slightly so that one hit the cold body of Cho. He was about to push Wormtail out of the way when the spell hit the older man.

"No!!! No!!" Wormtail's body fell limply onto his own. Then he felt it, a part of him disappeared, left his body as the man before him died.

"NNNNNOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Thomas screamed, his voice causing the lights to flick out as the portraits started to fall onto the floor.

* * *

Black gave a deadly glare towards the headmistress who had her wand pointed directly at his heart.

"Why waste your time on me when you should be after my godson?" Black laughed. "If I hadn't been locked up the last few days, I wouldn't sill be here." He snapped at her. McGonagall only ignored him. "Voldemort will come, he will come for us." The man continued. "He himself will come for us." The headmistress squinted at him with disapproval.

"Stupefy!" A hissed came out of nowhere. The spell caught McGongall by surprise effectively stunning her. Black looked around before spotting a figure coming towards him.

"Hello Black." Karkaroff appeared from the shadows.

"You!" The approaching figure smiled. With a flick of his wand the binds on Sirius sprang apart.

"Get out of here."

Sirius just stood there for a while as he took his own wand back from the man. He was knocked back into his senses when Karkaroff conjured a portkey.

"Take it. It'll return you back to our lord."

"I'm sorry for ever doubting your loyalty Igor." Sirius reached for the portkey when his eyes darted to McGonagall. "Why didn't you kill her?" The man pulled Black close to him.

"I was supposed to replace Snape. I'll erase her memory after you get out. Come on."

"Thanks" Sirius suddenly jerked back. He felt a presence leave his body, causing him to feel empty. "

No, no, Thomas, Wormtail please be alright.."

"NNNNNOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!" Thomas's scream shook the whole building. Sirius immediately bounded away.

"Sirius wait up!" Karkaroff too dashed off but turned around quickly.

"Obliviate!" He muttered and watched the spell hit the headmistress before running after his companion.

* * *

"Wormtail I'm sorry, I'm so sorry." Thomas muttered. He stood up, laid Cho's body next to the other before bounding off in his animagus form. Mad-Eye crouched over the dead bodies as he passed by.

"No, Alastor we will come back. We must get the boy." The other man nodded.

"Yes, Albus." The two chased off flinging spells at the lion.

The lion dashed off here and there, causing some to become dazed as to why an animal such as this would be let loose around the castle and more confused as to why the headmaster and the ex-auror would be emitting deadly curses at it.

* * *

Padfoot's ears perked up as his eyes scanned for any movement. There was none. The dog hurried off, bounding from one corridor to another trying to locate his godson and friend.

The dog's heart sank as he approached the two dead bodies on the floor. He growled madly, and yelped in a sad solemn tune. Using his paw, he nudged the man but there was no response. It was cold and lifeless.

"Easy, easy." A hand touched to dog's back. "I'm sorry." Karkaroff muttered. Padfoot only nodded. He paced up and down trying to find any signs of his godson.

"I'm sure Thomas made it out." The man continued.

Padfoot growled, a bit louder, causing the man to fall silent. The dog strained his senses to search for any signs. It was then, that he smelled something, the scent of an animal. Changing back to his other form, Sirius informed the other.

"He's alive. I'm going after him."

"No." Karkaroff held tightly onto his shoulder. "Go back. I'll go.."

"You're no match."

"I don't care. They won't hurt me, remember, I'm suppose to be on their side." Black only glared at the man. "Besides you're injured. Go back and inform Master. Besides someone has to go back for reinforcements." Black nodded in defeat.

"Very well." Sirius took a hold of the two bodies before conjuring a portkey. "Be careful." he muttered, as he disappeared.

* * *

The lion was met with the cool night air as he stepped out of the castle. He had been hit countless times with all the spells that were known to mankind. A few killing curses had scraped passed him. Now the lion was wounded, weak, and tired. Slowly he dragged his right hind leg as its bones had been detached. Using his front paws, he heaved himself forward. Blood was dripping out of his wounds and as it did he began to feel light headed.

Somehow during all the curses he had lost the men that were chasing him. Cussing silently at all the losses, the lion let out a wounded howl, one after another. Then, coming from the forbidden forest, another howl erupted as if beckoning towards him. Knowing exactly who that howl had belonged to, he made his way toward the forest, seeking for the one man he knew that could help him, even if not willingly.

The lion slowly made its way deeper and deeper into the forest, growling and then following the reply. Eventually he made his way into the center of the forest where he paused in front of a hut. In front of the hut stood what seemed to be a man, or beast, he could not tell. The figure, whatever it was came towards him and under the moonlight he could tell it was a wolf. The wolf came closer before transforming into a human and then opening his arms.

"Harry." The man whispered, as the lion collapsed into his arms.


	22. Chapter 22

**Chapter 22**

His body crashed to the floor as he landed with a thud in a place where he knew he would be safe. He could hear murmurs around him. Looking up he noticed that he had landed inside a dungeon cell.

A hand touched him and he immediately flinched.

"Sirius" the voice called out questioningly. He only nodded as he noticed that the other voices were talking loudly about him.

"Oh god isn't that Cho and Wormtail?"

"They're dead." A third voice said. He could feel the bodies being tugged away from him but he held on tighter.

"Stay away from him" he could hear Molly's voice from across the room where she was locked up in another dungeon.

"He's hurt mum." Bill added.

"Let him be, let him die. Stay away from him." Arthur added. "He's a bloody murderer. He'll kill you."

"Ginny! What the hell are you doing?" Molly sneered from across the room. She watched as did the rest of them at how she heaved up the man and dragged him towards the cell door.

"I gotcha. Easy Black." Ginny muttered, ignoring her family and friends.

"Are you sure about this Weasley, I mean in front of them?" Sirius asked back, allowing himself to be helped.

"Ha! I chose my path the day I was marked. Besides sooner or later they'll find out."

The words did not seem to have register in anyone's mind. When it did linger long enough, Bill and Charlie immediately went to block the cell door. Ginny snatched Black's wand and pointed it at them.

"Get out before I kill you." Ginny spoke without hesitation.

Her brothers looked hurt but not surprised as by now there had been too many surprises to be surprised any longer. To expect the impossible had become quite natural.

"and I mean it" Ginny added seeing no movement.

"Here let me." Black took back his wand and flung two curses at them. Both of the eldest sons fell dead onto the floor.

Molly and Arhur shriek and cursed. Both Ginny and Black ignored them as the two hurried out of the dungeons, levitating the two dead bodies behind them.

* * *

He watch as the lion changed back into a person as he collapsed in his arms. Gently the older man rested the younger man's weight upon himself before carefully making his way back to the hut. Once inside he placed the boy on his bed. After leaving the room briefly, he returned with a tray of medicine, bandages, casts, a bucket of warm water and a towel.

Lupin sighed at the work at hand. Using his wand he cleaned up the bloody mess. With his hands he dipped the towel inside the bowl of warm water and started to wipe off the blood on the body before proceeding to clean up the injures.

It must have hurt because the unconscious boy leapt up into the air. Faster then light Harry grabbed his victim's neck which in turn caused the tray of medical needs to be knocked over, spilling onto the floor. Using his hands he turned them into claws and then dug it into the man's skin.

"Ha—Harry it's alright. It's just me—Ha..." Being the subconscious predator he was, Lupin held completely still for he knew better then most when it was time to be submissive, even if he could turn predatory in which case he would hurt Harry which ultimately isn't his goal. "It's me Re—Remus." he choked out, hoping against hope that he hadn't made the wrong decision to not defend himself against a potentially dangerous enemy.

"Remus? Moony?" The boy blinked a few times before hastily letting go of the man. "Sorry." Harry murmured so softly that Remus knew that if he wasn't a werewolf he would have not heard the apology.

"Harry?" Remus asked, as he watch the boy struggle to stand up before collapsing down again. The older man reached out to help but the boy swiped the offer away.

"Thanks for your consideration but I must leave now."

"You're not leaving in this mess for you'll die." Remus found his voice faltering as he continued. "For all the things you've put the world through, for all the things that you will do, for all the things you've done to me, for all the pain you've put to me through, I hate to admit it, but I, Harry, I don't want you dead."

Remus studied Harry carefully after his own admission, waiting patiently for some vocal fire back that he knew would come. It never came, in fact it looked as though Harry hadn't even heard the latter part.

"Then so be it. I won't cause another innocent man to die on my account." Harry tried to stand up but fell once more.

"I don't understand. Aren't you supposed to be mocking me or trying to recruit me after my personal slip? What happened Harry, what is it that broke you're sprit. You're not the Harry I know, not the Thomas I remember."

Harry turned to look up at the man, who was surprised to find tears.

"They're dead because of me. If I don't leave now then you'll die too! Don't you understand Lupin? I don't want you to die!" Harry gripped the man by his collar. "It's all my fault, they're dead."

"Who?" The man spoke so calmly and softly that Harry barley caught the word. "Is it Peter, or Sirius or your father?" The question seemed to surprise Harry for he was momentary distracted. "Yes I know one of them is dead but which one?" Lupin loosed himself from the grip. "I didn't think any of their deaths would hit you so hard for you never liked Peter and well Voldemort's been your number 1 enemy for how long?" Remus seemed to catch himself here. "Wait, it was Sirius wasn't it? It—it was Sirius, it had to be. Oh Harry…"

"Wormtail and Cho." Harry corrected. He could feel Remus let out a breath of relief.

Harry knew Sirius and Remus were best friends and he had always felt guilty about tearing apart their friendship by turning evil. After all the three of them were the perfect family before Voldemort's revelation. Sometimes Harry had wondered what life would have been like if it had continued on with him not knowing that Voldemort was his father and Sirius was evil. As Lupin pointed out though Voldemort was his father, the man really didn't mean as much as Sirius and Remus did to Harry and as long as Harry was happy it really didn't matter if Sirius was evil. He had been happy then, hadn't he? Yes, he had and he would have happily killed off his unknown father if it meant he could live his Godfather and Uncle forever. Of course that couldn't happen because that was a lie, a life of lies created by Albus Dumbledore, the very man who ripped apart his family in the first place. As much as he hated to see his ideal family suffering because of his decision this was the life of reality then in the virtual one created by Dumbledore.

Harry gritted his teeth as he thought of Dumbledore. How he hated the man for destroying his life. He felt arms of comfort wrap around him and he pulled Remus closer, returning the hug.

"Dumbledore killed them. Dumbledore…he…." The boy didn't finish, he didn't need to finish.

"Hush Harry, hush."

The two sat in each other's embrace for the longest time. At last Harry pulled away.

"Please, I shouldn't be here. If that bastard finds out, he'll kill you."

"Then let him come" came the simple reply. "Let him come, let them all come."

Harry looked directly into the older man's eyes, seeing that there was no fear. For a minute hope flared in his heart and a question popped into his mind but his mouth remained shut as he found himself unable to voice his suggestion.

"Before Severus died I made him a promise that no matter what happens I won't leave you in the hands of Dumbledore."

"But"

"And I will stand by it." Again Remus found himself faltering. "Even if we now side differently on larger matters. Sirius may be you're Godfather and Voldemort you're father but as they are not here you will listen to me. I'm still you're Uncle, that is, if you still care as much as you claim that you do."

"Of course, but Remus"

Lupin cut him off.

"Now you will stay here. Once you're healed, you can go back to Voldemort. I am not going to risk you going off alone." The man stroke the boy's hair. "Unless of course Voldemort comes for you himself, otherwise we'll be spending some time together."

Harry noted the sincerity in his voice and the gentleness and kindness that came from the man within. Though now they were on different sides when it came to war, he could tell that Lupin trusted and cared for him just as much, if not more then before. It was both hard to and not hard to return the feelings.

Harry let himself be comfortably settled upon the bed.

"Come on now hold still and I'll clean you up." Harry watched as the man cleaned and care for him the Muggle way. He knew perfectly well that the other man could just conjure everything and be done with it, yet Lupin was taking his time, paying close attention to everything, clearly showing some of the qualities that Harry loved about the man and made it hard for him to hurt the werewolf.

* * *

The headmaster and the ex-auror walked with defeat back to the Great Hall. Somehow, the two had lost track of the lion. The two were growing old, and age was catching up with them.

"Where do you think that brat disappeared to?" Moody asked, as the two settled down. Dumbledore gave a wearily look.

"He probably went back. There's no point in staying."

"That's right Black disappeared, Wormtail died and his wounds are going kill him." McGonagall added.

A large growl disturbed the silence. It was followed by howls, and growl, and more howls.

"Do you think its possible" Moody began. "That Remus has something to do with this?"

Dumbledore remained silent.

"No, he's a werewolf and no werewolf can approach humans nor animals that well especially not when Lupin's been in such a foul mood for the past weeks."

"Who can blame him? Tough luck, he's been hit the worst."

"but what about Th--"

"We will search tomorrow morning. It's getting late and its unsafe to leave Hogwarts at this hour."

"You mean there could be others out there?"

"Out there? I do not know what is out there. We will have to wait and see." The headmaster finished with finality.

* * *

"Weasley you will prepare the other Death Eaters." Ginny nodded and left the room as quickly as she had entered.

Black watched on as a feeling of uneasiness traveled throughout his body. He didn't have the slightest idea of how he would be punished for all that has happened but he knew that he would be.

"So" Voldemort began softly. "Tell me everything." Black gulped hard, knowing that the punishment that awaited him was going to be great, especially since the Dark Lord was waiting. Black wondered if his friend was just waiting for the right time, when he would let slip something before punishing him for everything that he ever done wrong.

Taking in a deep breath Sirius told his side of the tale. Voldemort let him talk on and on without interrupting once.

"and that's all that I know." Black said as he finished his tale.

"Give me it." Voldemort held out his hand. "The crest." He added.

From his inner robes, Sirius took out Snaape's crest, the one with the fox, 'Vulpus' and the letter's 'S, S' written on it. Voldemort took it and held onto it.

"Hmm in the end he did do something right."

"Voldemort?"

"Yes?"

"I don't know how to say this, but I think Remus isn't all that he seems. He's doing things, and 'accidentally' letting things slip under that Muggle lover's nose. I think, I really think we should recruit him."

"No!" came the Dark Lord's sharp reply.

"why?"

"he isn't ready and I don't want to end up with more spies then all that I have now."

"but Remus isn't..."

"I know he isn't like that Black." He cut the other man off. "If he was ready, he would have voluntarily come a long time ago."

Black didn't know what to say.

"In time Black. Be patient, we will wait and see." Here Voldemort paused and stared intently at Sirius. "I know how much this is hurting you, Sirius. I understand Padfoot, I really do."

"I know. You're probably the only one who knows me the best, even better then I know myself sometimes. Prongs never came close."

"Prongs" Voldemort spoke slowly letting the name linger.

"Prongs" Sirius repeated.

"Set a fine example."

"Moony's not Prongs Voldemort."

"I don't need to remind you why Prongs was targeted for you were the mastermind behind it."

"Indeed not. He was a threat."

"No, he was a lesson to be learned from."

"He was my best friend."

"and here I thought I was."

"You are my best friend. You've always been my first priority Tom."

"I was your investment." Voldemort reminded ever so quietly.

"and it paid off."

"even at the expense of James."

Yes, even at the expense of James." Sirius gave a huge sigh.

"James who is not Remus but if pushed far enough in a certain direction will become him. Remus whom Thomas is quite attached to would be devastated if he lost Moony. Do not push Moony Padfoot. If left alone, then in time all will be well."

"I hope so, I really hope so."

"In the meantime I want Wormtail buried along with the girl. Both shall be given a proper burial."

"Of course." Sirius replied off handedly to the change in topic.

"And oh Sirius?"

"Hmm?"

"Don't forget, he didn't', so you shouldn't either." Voldemort fingered the crest.

"Of course." Bending over Wormtail, he searched the dead man's robes. From inside he finally found what he was looking for. It was another crest. On this one was a rat. On top read 'Wormtail', and on the bottom were the letters 'P' 'P'. Like the fox, the rat seemed to come alive and take a life of its own.

"Now go and burry them. When you come back we shall personally retrieve my boy."

"Do you have a plan?"

"I don't need one."

"Prongs is indeed a lesson to be learned from. Perhaps Moony does need a push."

"Then you will lose him. Are you prepared for that?"

"I've never led you wrong Voldemort. Trust me. Moony just needs a push in the right direction."

"What is this plan of yours?"

"Well it wouldn't work unless you locate your son first."

"Done. I gave him a necklace on his 16th birthday. I've made it so that I could find him anywhere and know who he is with at all times."

"And where exactly is he now? Who is he with?"

"He's in the center of the forbidden forest along with someone by the nickname of Moony."

Sirius smirked at that.

"Even better." Sirius then proceeded to tell Voldemort his plan. When he was finished, Voldemort's eyes were intensely flashing a color of emotions.

"Trust me Voldemort. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. If Prongs was indeed a lesson to be learned from, then you will honor him by doing this."

* * *

He was tired but he waited patiently. He hadn't slept at all and he was glad that he didn't. The boy had nightmares where he had been calling for his father, Godfather, his lover, Wormtail, and of course the one who had tended to him, Remus

Now dawn had broke and darkness fell as it drited away. Harry slowly awoke to singing birds and the warmth that was in the hut. His eyes slowly flicked open. The first thing he saw was a face. Blinking a few times his vision focused.

"Ah you're awake." Lupin helped the boy sit up. "

Hm…um…." Harry groaned. "You didn't sleep? I kept you up?"

Lupin nodded, before adding. "Nah, it wasn't anything. I usually don't sleep well these days. It's not your fault."

The boy said nothing as he knew that it was.

"I'll get us some breakfast." Lupin muttered as he broke the silence. "I think after a few days when the bandages are taken off then you can go."

Harry's eyes lit up before managing his courage to ask the question that was bugging him for he didn't know how Remus would react to it or how the werewolf would answer it.

"Will you come with me?"

"No" came the firm reply.

"Why? Why not, there's nothing left for us on that side."

"Because" Lupin breathed softly. "I still haven't moved on. I still can't face Voldemort without hating him, despising him on what he did that night." There was another pause. "I can't face him. Being with them only brings back the memories." Lupin sighed. "You won't understand. I've been running all my life. I'm a coward, I know, but that's just the way I've been dealing with the losses and now with Wormtail it makes it even harder."

Harry looked at him.

"So you think by running away you'll be able to cope?"

"Yes and I have been able to do so."

Harry just flung his arms into the air, causing his wounds to reopen as the bandages fell off. Lupin gave a startled look. He quickly reached out and helped the boy fix them.

"Harry this has nothing to do with anyone, not you, Dumbledore or Voldemort. You're asking me to join you. I can't because I know I will only betray you. I can't do that Harry. I know why Prongs was targeted, and I did nothing to stop them that night. Prongs was a lesson to be learned." Remus reached out and took one of Harry's hands, holding it in his own. "This is a battle between me and myself. When time comes I assure you….." he let his voice trail off, letting the other wonder what he could be assured of.

* * *

The three were at the edge of the forbidden forest. Moody bent down and examined the area.

"There's nothing there Alastor, you've been staring at dirt for the past hour." McGonagall said wearily. "Are you guys sure he came this way?"

"Yes" the ex-auror replied, "the growling and yells came from here."

"Here I've found something." Dumbledore's beard touched the floor, as he examined the dirt. The two hurried over where they found dry blood and three faint paw prints. Where the fourth paw print should have been, was drag dirt.

"A broken leg." Moody noted.

"blood, excessive bleeding." The headmistress continued. Dumbledore, searched from side to side, following the clues. The other two followed closely behind.

"Albus why didn't he just portkey out? He could have just used a tree or something."

"I don't know Alastor, he was probably too weak or didn't think of that at the time."

"Where do you think it goes? There isn't anything inside the forest is there?"

Albus looked further ahead.

"Yes, there is. There's an old hut in the center. I think it used to belong to the founders of Hogwarts."

* * *

Lupin's ears jerked up.

"Quiet" he muttered.

"What is it?"

"People, I could hear footsteps." He paused. "After all, werewolves have great senses." he whispered. Harry stilled for if Lupin hadn't said anything he would have missed it. Using his eyes he peered through the dusty window.

"Harry duck." He did so as Lupin too moved away from the window.

"It's them Harry, Dumbledore, Mad-Eye, and McGonagall." The man said after a while. "and its too late, we can't get out without them noticing."

"It's alright. I'm almost healed. I can take care of myself."

"Almost but not quite."

Lupin took one of Harry's hands. "I promise no matter what happens, they won't take you nor will they kill you."


	23. Framed

**Chapter 23 Framed**

The three invited themselves into the old and tattered hut. Their eyes dimmed, widened, and then dimmed. What they saw was massive dry blood, and either fur, skin or hair that was scattered throughout the room. Sweeping their eyes throughout the room, they found that someone else was in it.

Lupin was wiping and dusting, scrubbing and washing the mess inside the room. He didn't seem to have notice that a group of people had entered, or if he did, did not acknowledge it.

"Good morning Remus" Dumbledore greeted. The man stopped what he was doing and turned to face the three.

"Good morning Albus, Alastor, Minerva." He paused. "Make yourselves at home. It's sad to say that I am not much of a host."

Dumbledore nodded, his eyes shifting to the mess around the room.

"What happened here?"

"I'm afraid I'm losing it." Lupin began, gesturing to the mess. "It's the remains of last night's meal." McGonagall looked as though she could throw up. Mad-Eye just ruffed his wooden feet. Dumbledore's eyes became slits.

"It's odd. Last night there was a transformation, if you remember and it wasn't even full moon!" The headmaster walked closer, and fingered the mess.

"Well, I guess you wouldn't know then seeing that you were preoccupied with a delicious meal of Cenaturs. Hopefully you didn't eat Bane or Frenzi."

"Yes hopefully not."

An uneasy silence filled the room.

"By the way what wouldn't I know." Lupin asked, though of course he knew exactly all that had happened. Dumbledore took his time before replying.

"Last night Black escaped. Wormtail and Cho died and Thomas is on the loose though he was injured."

Lupin seemed to gape at that. "Really?"

"We're afraid so," McGonagall replied, gloomily.

"And poor kid too, he's out there somewhere injured and all." Alastor added.

"That's right." Dumbledore headed for the door.

"Not staying?"

"No" The headmaster flicked his eyes to a big blob of mess letting it linger there. "We must be on our way. We need to find that boy." He paused. "Oh Remus it's for his own good. If you find him or if he shows up please take him to the castle where Poppy can treat him."

"I'll keep that in mind headmaster." Remus walked to the door and bided farewell, making a lame excuse as to why he wouldn't be going back to the castle with them.

It was nearly ten minutes later that Remus spoke once more.

"Harry its ok now, you can come out." As he said this he used his wand to clean up the mess that he had created himself.

Harry sat up turning visible once more.

"Now, that wasn't that bad was it?"

"No of course not. However I think Albus knows I am here. He was looking directly at me throughout that chat you had with him."

"Then why didn't he expose you?"

"I think he has something up his sleeve. It's quite unusual that he's like that. Still I'm glad he didn't because I'm not sure I would have been able to defend you like this." Harry gestured at his bandages. "And you would need defending because I doubt anyone would be please to learn of what you've been doing for me."

Remus gave a weak smile as he forced himself to not think of what could have happened if Harry really had been exposed.

"Agreed, I hope by the time Dumbledore's plan takes shape, you'll be out of here."

* * *

"Albus! What in the world were you thinking?" Mad-Eye growled, as they left the forest. "I might have not been able to see him but I could sense him! He was there! He was invisible! Don't tell me you didn't know that!" 

"I do." The headmaster turned to face him. "and that is why I cast that spell before we left."

"That's just to let us know if anymore people visit them. What use is that?"

"Very useful." There was something in the headmaster's eyes.

"What about Remus?" Mad-Eye pressed on. "He's a werewolf and therefore by extenstion impossible to not have known Thomas was hiding in his hut."

"Do you think he's" McGonagall began but was interrupted by Dumbledore.

"Go and gather all that is able to walk, fight and do battle, teachers and students a like."

"What?" The two seemed distracted by this.

"Once whoever visits them and its most likely that it would be Tom himself, the plan shall be set to motion."

"And what is this plan?"

"To assure us that Remus will not betray us. After this he will never be able to join Voldemort." Dumbledore's voice was full of assurance. "and if he has already, I'm sure, he'll deserve severe punishment. Perhaps Tom would be so kind to get rid of him for us."

* * *

That night 

"Sirius, are you ready?"

"Yes."

"Good, we shall go now and rescue my boy.."

"What about the others?"

"We will go alone."

"But isn't that dangerous?"

"We're just slipping the boy out. No one would know."

"But what about Remus?"

"We can deal with him properly once we see who he really is."

"Yes."

"Now let us Portkey away."

* * *

Remus watched the sleeping boy. He had sent Harry to sleep early for he was still recovering and anybody would know that the best way to heal would be to get some rest and sleep. 

A long time passed as the man made sure that the other was asleep before sitting down on a nearby table. With a wave of his wand he conjured a glass of Butterbear and a book.

Thud! Remus barely noticed the sound before he felt a wand being pointed at his back.

"He's sleeping" Remus said softly, gesturing at the bed across from them. Voldemort nodded for Sirius to wake him up before taking back his wand and sat across from the drinking man. He conjured a Butterbear for himself.

"Why?" Voldemort hissed out as he took a sip of his drink. "Why are you letting us go so easily without a fight?"

"Dumbledore came this morning and he asked for the boy."

Voldemort shifted his body.

"But I believe that the boy would be better off with his father. Who knows what Dumbledore would do to him?" Lupin leaned closer. "I made Snape a promise and I intend to keep it."

"And how can I trust you?"

"Is this enough?" He opened the Dark Lord's clutched fist and placed something into it. Voldemort looked down at it. "He would have wanted it to be kept in safe hands." Lupin continued softly. "Don't let any childhood grudges stop you. You need as many people as you can get." Voldemort nodded in acceptance as he placed the item into his pocket.

"Now you must leave before any more commotion occurs." Voldemort glanced at Sirius, who now had his arms wrapped around a lively Harry.

"Father" Harry muttered through a yawn. The Dark Lord took the boy by his shoulder.

"You have much explaining to do when we get home." Harry's eyes dulled.

"You will take care of Harry Voldemort?"

"Rest assured Moony."

Lupin turned to Black. "Take care of both of them my friend."

"Of course."

"Remus are you sure you aren't coming with us?"

"I'm sorry Harry but here is where I belong."

Harry glanced up at his father hesitantly before adding.

"You'll always be welcome with us."

"I'll keep that in mind, I'll keep that in mind." Lupin conjured up some medicine and bandages. "Here take these, you're still hurt." Sirius went up and took it from him.

"Now we really must be going." Black added.

"Yes."

"Portus." Voldemort pointed his wand at a chair. "We will come back for you Moony."

The three touched the chair. However, after a long time the portkey did not activate.

Suddenly the door to the hut banged open. Instantly many professors, Order members and students poured in with their wands pointing directly at the Dark Lord, his son, and Black.

"Well done Remus, you've got them just where they need to be. Just as we always planned." Dumbledore spoke quietly, as his blue eyes stared straight at his enemies.


	24. Betrayal

**Chapter 24 Betrayal**

All heads spun towards Lupin as eyes widened. Voldemort, who was closest to him, let go of Harry and clutched the man by his collar, lifting him up so that the Dark Lord's blood red eyes poured into the other man. Voldemort forcefully broke through the other man's mental barriers, which wasn't easy. He could see the innocence, but deep down he believed that something fishy was going on. He was furthered persuaded by Dumbledore's simple fact that Lupin shifted uncomfortably and tried to break his gaze.

"I'm innocent. I swear I have nothing to do with this." Lupin said through gasps of air.

"Believe me Tom, Lupin's one of my best man. If he really was innocent then why would he need to keep a barrier between your mind and his? It's obvious that he's got something to hide."

Lupin threw a deadly glare at Dumbledore who didn't help the situation at all.

_Damn it!! I'm framed! Innocent. You set me up Dumbledore! You fucking set me up! I've got nothing to do with your stupid plan. _

Lupin's hatred toward the headmaster grew as he 'saw' that slick smile stuck on the old man's face. Furthermore, Voldemort's face seemed convinced that Dumbledore was telling the truth for it made a lot more sense and gave reason to all that Lupin had been doing. The only reason Voldemort thought that Lupin could act so causal and mysterious plus friendly was because he was under strict orders which was to gain Voldemort's trust, and then spy on him. That was something that the Dark Lord could not have.

Lupin's heart pounded fiercely as he tried to find ways to convince them that he was neutral. He knew that it was going to be impossible. Dumbledore had suspicions that he was a Death Eater, and one of Voldemort's best man, when now Voldemort thought just the opposite. He knew that from tonight on, that is if he made it out alive, he would become a fugitive, running and hiding from both sides.

"He's innocent father. I swear Lupin's been set up!" Lupin's eyes flickered towards Harry as a sense of gratitude filled him. Voldemort's eyes squinted into slits.

"If Remus ever wanted to hurt us, he would have done so already!" Harry spoke louder. "Think about it! He saved me so many times! I swear this is just Dumbledore's little scheme. Lupin isn't like that! He would nev…"

Something flew out of Voldemort's wand and it hit Harry which surprised everyone. Harry's body jerked, and fell to the floor. His face screwed up in agonizing pain, though he did not scream out loud. Both Sirius and Remus wore the most shocked faces then anyone else who was there to witness it.

"You've already pleaded enough. Both you and Black have already fallen into Dumbledore's scheme in which we take Lupin under our wing when in reality he is not one of our own. This pleading will be to no avail" Voldemort's eyes bore deeper into the others. "He's just like James."

Lupin's breath quickened as the other began to squeeze.

"That same look that James had. I don't know why I didn't see it before but he's just like him!"

"No!" Black snapped, a bit sharper then he ever had. "He's not Potter! You will not let out your old childhood grudge and anger on Lupin. He might have stuck up for him. He might have done stuff that you were not pleased about. However he's the most level minded of the group. You know as well as I just who Remus is and who he'll hold his loyalties towards."

The Dark Lord spun angrily around to face Black.

"You know as well as I, why James was targeted."

"but"

"and it's the same reason why Lupin needs to be rid of."

"No! James had reasons to betray you! Lupin's framed! He has no reason to do what Dumbledore said he did!"

"You never know!" The Dark Lord held Lupin towards Black. "Look at him! Just look at him! He's just an older version of Potter!"

Black bit his lip as he turned his own wand towards his long time friend.

"You're making a mistake Voldemort." Black said loudly and clearly. He cast a spell towards Harry and the boy stopped jerking and rolling in pain. Walking over he picked up the boy and let him lean on his shoulder. He bent down and whispered something into his ear. Harry's eyes widened tremendously.

/Father what is that suppose to mean?/ Harry hissed out.

/Do it my boy. .I know the truth. I'm not as stupid as some people think/ The Dark Lord nodded towards Black. /Now listen carefully. You will put on a show for the old fool. Black will lead it. You will catch on. Lupin, I know he will figure it out shortly. Now the three of you must cooperate./

/I can't! But that will mean, that will mean…./

/This is the only way to get some sense through that thick werewolf skull. After this Moony will come around and all will be well. Even after everything's that happened, Moony and Padfoot have remained you're number one priotry. Now is the chance to get what you've always wanted and more. Do it Harry, do it my boy. Just remember that no matter what happens I'll always be with you./

/But why? How can I? Why do I have to be the one?/

/because you are the only one who is able to. Do you understand my boy?/

Harry nodded at his father's words.

/promise me that after this everything will be well again./

/yes, my son, I promise./

Harry gulped and place his hands on Black's wand. Slightly shaking he let his wand hand be led to point towards his father.

"I'm sorry father. I might have not known James but I know Remus. What you're doing is wrong. I will not let you kill Remus. If you killed James because he's like Remus then that was wrong as well."

"Shut up boy you know nothing!"

Dumbledore watched amused at the sudden change. It seemed to him that they were only acting, but he did not care. It was still an internal conflict, one that in the end might evolve into a bigger one. Glancing at the people he had brought he signal them not to make a move yet.

"I know both James and Remus. He, neither of them are like that." Black said causally. "You're just taking your frustration off on the people who are the closes to you! If you don't stop now then in the end you will have no one left!"

"And what exactly do you mean Black?" Voldemort sneered.

Black took in a deep breath as he chose his words carefully.

"How long have I known you?"

The Dark Lord raised his eyebrow as if he was calculating.

"As long as I can remember. You were with me from the very beginning. As they say without you, I'm nothing."

Black nodded approvingly.

"And what if that was just an act all along? What if I told you or showed you that I was actually your worst and deadliest enemy?"

The Dark Lord laughed hard shaking the surrounding area.

"I will not believe it. It's absurd."

"Then why do you say James and Remus did?"

"They're different."

At this Black's laugh shook hard, matching the one that Voldemort had produced earlier.

"You are nothing without me." Black sneered. "Now you will release my best friend or you shall suffer my wrath."

"You're insane!"

"Maybe, but if I haven't help you, I would have been the Dark Lord. Now you shall fall and I will rise."

"The only one who's going to take my place is my son!"

At this Sirius took a hold of Harry. He bent over the boy.

"Kill him now, fulfill the prophecy and you will be the next Dark Lord, my lord." He paced around the boy, murmuring words that he knew would cause hate between them.

"Go on my boy, kill Voldemort and you will be free. Kill everyone here who has caused you pain and suffering." Harry didn't reply. "Just one simple curse my lord and the world is yours."

Harry struggled with himself. Black's words were tempting but he knew that he didn't mean it. He could never bring himself to kill his father.

"Like father like son." Black was saying. "Voledmort killed his father, and now you kill yours. What can I say, it must be a Riddle thing."

"Crucio!" The Red light flashed and hit Black on his back. Sirius smiled evilly. He held up his finger, and showed the Ring.

"Thanks to your boy I can't be killed let alone tortured! Besides if I would say so myself I've become immune to pain!" This time, Black cast his own spells at Voldemort, who easily deflected it. Knowing, that Lupin was only going to slow his efforts of eliminating the 'rebellion', he used all his might to throw the man away from him. Lupin flew headfirst, his face crashing onto the window, shattering it and landed somewhere where no one could see him.

"There now one down and two to go." Voldemort brushed his hands clasping it together. Gently, he opened his arms. "Come to me my boy, destroy them, destroy all of them."

"No." The reply was soft and barely audible, but it caused shock throughout those who attended. Dumbledore had to scratch his ears to make sure that he had been hearing the truth.

"It's because of you that they died." He counted them on his fingers. "Potter, Snape, Pettigrew and how many more of those who I have deliberately said not to harm in any way must die before me?"

"As many as it takes."

Harry rolled his eyes.

"I think your time is up." Using his hands without his wand he conjured up his energy into a dark orb. It was pure black and seemed to grow infinitely.

"Tonight you shall fall and I shall rise." Harry gave a shallow life. Voldemort spoke softly.

"Just because I'm dead that doesn't mean Dumbledore would let you go."

"No."

"You are more dangerous and powerful then anyone…."

"exactly."

Letting it go the energy blasted into Voldemort. To Dumbledore's surprise, the Dark Lord did not make any attempt to move or cast a protective spell. He watched as Darkness consumed him, destroying everything and everyone in its path. Then he saw two items flicker into the air. He thought he must have imagined it for it was gone the next moment.

The dust and debris that was caused by the dark energy slowly disappeared. When it did the headmaster found that only he and a few more professors and students were left standing. Both Harry and Sirius were gone. Voldemort's body laid in an awkward position with his head twisted to the side. It was obvious that he was dead. Looking closer, Dumbledore found that the Dark Lord's lips were curled into a smile, bearing a triumph 'I win' look.


	25. The Crest

**Chapter 25 The Crest**

He cried his eyes out. He couldn't believe what he had just done. He couldn't believe that he actually let his Godfather talk him into killing his own father, his Godfather's best friend! He couldn't deny the temptation that was enclosed in it, nor the satisfactory that he received afterwards, one that he knew could only be replaced by another death, by the death of Albus Dumbledore.

He pounded the man's chest hard as he cried into the other man's embrace. He could hear the soothing words but it didn't ease the pain. Nothing that he did could ease the pain, the sickness that had befallen his body.

He knew he could have easily turned his blast towards the headmaster and kill him. However he didn't and that surprised him because it would have been too easy. He wondered now about all the possibilities that could have happened, replaying the scene over and over again each with a different ending. Something was wrong with all of them though. Voldemort, no matter what he did ended up dead either from his hands, his Godfather, or from Dumbledore himself. Perhaps all this was meant to be. Perhaps he was meant to die whereas his son was meant to rise and reign.

He let his imagination wander as he tried to deny what he had just did.

"Thomas?" Black questioned as he tried to comfort his Godson. The teen didn't reply as he tried to do everything to let go of his pain and anger.

"I'm sorry." Black continued. "But they are waiting and we must deal with what is present. You must see the other Death Eaters."

"I don't want to."

"You must. Voldemort isn't around any longer."

"It's your fault!" Harry screamed.

"No. It's his last wish. It was his plan. I was merely taking out his order."

"His last wish? His last wish?" Thomas nearly exploded but held his temper down.

"Please Thomas, we cannot have a fake rebellion turn into a real one!" Black repeated. "You must see them! Afterwards I promise to tell you the truth."

"The truth?" Thomas breathed. "What truth?" he asked bringing his face closer to the other man.

"About what you should have known a long time ago."

"The VPMWPV?"Thomas breathed out softly.

"Yes, The VPMWPV." Black confirmed.

* * *

"What do you plan to do Albus?" A very anxious McGonagall asked, staring at the debris that was left behind. "His powers are unimaginable." The headmaster waived her off as he stared around searching for survivors.

"Igor"

"Hmm?" The Durmstrang headmaster asked.

"You look like you can walk. Why don't you take any injured to the castle."

"Of course." Karkaroff walked towards the dead trying and searched for the living.

"Viktor give me a hand."

Krum gruffly walked up.

"Hermione help me please?"

Hermione nodded as she made her way towards them.

"Miss. Granger can stay. I need a word with her." Dumbledore looked around the room. "Mr. Malfoy if you'll help." The headmaster nodded at Draco who reluctantly did as he was told. After gathering the injured, the three left towards the castle.

* * *

He panted hard as he made his way out of the Forbidden Forest. He couldn't believe what had just happened in the last 48 hours.

It had all began with his visit to Black. He had tried to get him out but things happened that weren't planed. He had been transformed into his other form and caused havoc and confusion. Harry and Wormtail had arrived and got Black out. However while escaping they had split up. From what Harry had told him, Wormtail and Cho died and Sirius' whereabouts were unknown.

He couldn't leave Harry in that condition so he had taken him in to take care of him. Dumbledore had come and gone with Voldemort doing the same, both in hopes of collecting Harry. How everything had gone wrong from there. He was now a foe to both his friends and enemies. He knew from now on that neither side would accept him.

Dumbledore, that bastard had accused him and now he was a fugitive, labeled both as a Death Eater and an Order member. A label which he knew would end up killing him. After all he was not Severus or Sirius, the only two of whom he knew might survive in the situation he was now being thrown at.

Lupin cursed at the stars. He cursed at his ill fated life or what's going to be left of it. Picking through his robes he found what he was looking for. It was the last piece of the Crest that belonged to the VPMWPV which the Dark side had not obtained. This was the last piece that would finally reunite them all.

Sighing he carefully made his way back to Hogwarts. He had to go to get a school owl to deliver it. Smiling slightly at the task at hand, he suddenly felt alive as an old and familiar presence washed over him.

The wolf in him was relentlessly trying to surface and take revenge on all the wrong doings that had accumulated throughout the years. It was an overwhelming experience but for the first time Lupin and the wolf was in sync and thus now he freely welcomed its presence. For too long had Remus thought of Moony as a separate and intruding presence in him but now it was different and now he understood that he was Moony and Moony was him.

* * *

Black stood towering over the others, standing protectively next to his godson who was now seated on his father's throne.

"Dumbledore killed my father." Thomas spoke quietly to the hooded figures before continuing "But we will avenge him." It was easy to blame the cause on someone else which he knew would cause the others to loath the man even more.

As the two expected there was restlessness in the group. Thomas knew that this would be the ideal time of rebellion from the Death Eaters. He needed to crush that thought before it even got the chance to ignite.

"I expect you all to follow me as you did my father." Thomas began. "It is quite unwise to want me as your enemy." He let the statement linger. To demonstrate his power the teen flashed his aurora, letting out his complete power which shook the whole manor and made all his followers tremble with awe. They knew that even their previous Dark Lord didn't have so much power and because of this, some of them had thought of joining the other side. However now seeing the power which the young man possessed, no one dared to betray him.

Two figures stepped up.

"Milord we exist to serve you" came the elder Malfoy's murmur.

"We dare not betray you. We are at your disposal." Bella's response lost its childish, playful tone. Thomas nodded knowing that if he had both of their support, the two which he had always felt suspicious towards, he knew he would not fall and would become greater then his father.

"You have the Dark Lord's gratitude" Thomas continued changing to the tone his father used regularly. He shifted in his seat as Black bent over and pretended to whispered something to him. The teen nodded, keeping his eyes on the others as he tried to depict their reactions towards this inequality. He was glad to find that there were no surprises. He assumed that it was regular for perhaps Sirius had been 'advising' his father all these years.

"Ah yes." Thomas continued as Black straightened up. "It seems to me that there is a high possibility that Dumbledore might take this chance to attack." There were a couple of scattered nods.

"I want them crush before they even reach this place."

"yes milord."

"However you will leave Dumbledore and his side kicks for me." He paused as he thought a bit more. "They should be the strongest of his men. I don't want them hurt just yet."

"Aside from Dumbledore who would those be?"

"I do not know yet. We shall see but make sure it is only 8 people. We shall see who the chosen ones are."

"Milord what do you plan to do with these stronger ones?"

"Ah Malfoy I have a gift just for them."

* * *

He bit the girl from behind and watched her fall silently to the floor. The wolf then transformed back to his human form. This was the first time he had tasted raw, human flesh and surprisingly he enjoyed it. The chase before the capture had been quite exhilarating and had invoke great pleasure then the final catch itself. Stalking, chasing, pouncing and the final act of tearing apart his prey had brought such pleasure that he couldn't wait to do it again. However the man suppressed his desire as he had more important business to attend to.

Taking a school owl roughly, he tied the crest onto its talons. He made sure it was secure. He didn't bother with a note knowing that the receiver would understand him perfectly.

"Take this to Sirius Orion Black." Lupin said softly and clearly. The owl hooted before taking flight.

Conjuring a sheet of paper he then transformed back to his wolf. Using his front paw, he wetted it with the hot blood that gushed from the dead body. Carefully he 'wrote' something onto the parchment. When that was done he transformed back to his human form, stuffed the parchment into the cold hand of his prey and then tied the other hand to another owl. He then placed a feather weight charm on the body. Making sure the bite mark was clearly exposed, Lupin spoke the owl.

"This goes to Albus Dumbledore." He said as he stared down at the owl with feral eyes. The owl hooted nervously. "Make sure he gets it tonight."

When it was apparent to the owl that Lupin was not going to speak anymore, it took off into the night sky.

Remus watched awhile before making his way to the only place that he might still be accepted warmly.

* * *

"Do you understand Hermione?"

"But Professor I know why there should be suspicions about Malfoy and Karkaroff but Viktor is not evil."

"He's from Durmstang." McGonagall said curtly. "And in being so you will not spend more time with him."

Mad-Eye continued. "They are all bloody traitors. CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" he barked.

Hermione hung her head as Dumbledore said that it was for her own good.

"Now what do you think we should do?" McGongall asked, changing the topic.

"We will attack them." Dumbledore replied.

"but"

"Tom just fell. It is the perfect time to attack. The boy is unstable. There will probably be rebellions. Black may as well be the only one who would stick by him. Now when they are all weak we shall conquer them once and for all."

At that moment a school owl flew in and dropped the body of a girl from the window. The owl did not wait to make sure Albus received the body or that it cared that it had dropped the body while still 40 feet in the air before it had taken off.

Dumbledore quickly sent a spell to slow down the body from its fall. When he had caught her in his arms, he found that the spell was unnecessary. By now the other's had gathered around Dumbledore to see who it was. All at once commotion occurred and some screamed or gasped in shock.

"Miss Jones!" McGonagall gasped in shock, being the first to recognize the 7th year Hufflepuff.

"CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" Moody barked as he stepped even closer to examine the girl.

"What do you see Alastor?" Dumbledore asked wearily. Of course he had his own suspicions but he needed them confirmed. He feared he knew the cause of this attack, but he didn't want to admit his mistakes.

"Werewolf attack." Alastor was saying. "The wound is still bleeding. It must have been less then 15 minutes ago."

"Werewolf?" Hermione asked. "But there is only one werewolf here. It couldn't have been…"

"Lupin wore her out good." Moody continued. He reached into one of her hands and pulled out the sheet of paper that was stained with a bloody paw print. "Toyed and tortured her as expected from a werewolf, as expected from a Death Eater."

"No." The headmaster said firmly. "Lupin was not a Death Eater prior to tonight. Yes, I did have my suspicions because all his friends and pup were dark and so there was no reason that he wouldn't be. I shouldn't have done what I did tonight. Now I have really driven him away from us. He will never return again regardless of him being able to obtain a place on the other side."

* * *

Black and Thomas withdrew to the Dark Lord's headquarters neither speaking to the other. Time and silence passed by slowly as each pondered their own thoughts.

"Tell me" Thomas said softly, breaking the silence at last. "everything."

Black inclined his head. Rummaging through his robes, he seemed to be looking for something.

At that moment an owl's screech caught his attention. Black went over and took a glance at the owl before his face widened into a sinister smile.

"Finally!" He exclaimed sounding quite happy as he took the item from the owl. "At last some sense has been knocked into that stubborn werewolf."

He stroke and patted the owl.

"How is the man who gave you this?" The owl seemed to shrug as if it didn't know what the man was talking about. Black sighed. "Very well go back to Hogwarts."

"Expecting something?" Thomas questioned as he watched the owl leave. Black's smile only grew. He couldn't help but laugh as he stared at what he held.

"Sirius?" Thomas asked, slightly worried about the other man

The laughing soon died down and Black turned to his Godson.

"What I hold in my hand is our chip to victory!" He handed it over to the teen who studied it closely.

It was a crest that he seemed to have seen before but he couldn't remember where.

"Look familiar?"

Thomas nodded, trying to remember hard. Sighing Black took out five more pieces of almost identical items. Thomas gasps as he realized that the six pieces actually fitted together to form one big crest.

The crest which the owl had just delivered had a wolf in the center. On the top was 'Moony' and below the animal was 'RL'. The one which was closet to Black had a picture of a fox, with 'Vulpus' on top and 'SS' on the bottom. The other four were quite similar only ranging in animal, nickname, and the letters. All the animals seemed to come alive and were either blinking, yawing, growling, or moving restlessly on the crest.

Sirius picked up one. It had a snake with blood shot eyes. The word 'Voldemort' shone on top. On the bottom was 'TR'

"This is the crest of the VPMWPV."

"What?"

"This was our crest, our symbol. It used to be one crest but after the group broke up, this was broken as well. Each person as it is proven now had kept their own piece."

Thomas fingered each one. Taking up first the crest of Sirius and then his father's followed by Lupin's, Snape's, Wormtail's and finally the last one which he held onto the longest. It was a stag, one that looked identical to his Protronus.

"Prongs" the teen muttered, fingering the initials 'JP'.

"There is a rumor" Sirius began, "which was passed on, but had died out once the Marauder's took shape" as he spoke he began to put the pieces together as if it was a jigsaw puzzle.

"Long after the fall of evil, when the Dark is about to be consumed and destroyed forever, one man will step forward and with his strength he will unleash the powers of the fallen VPMWPV." Black placed Voldmort's crest on the left, lining it up with his own. Then he took Lupin's and put it on the right side of his own.

"He will unite former foes, quench all childhood grudges, and gather the dead. With his powers, he will not only stop death in its tracks but bring back the dead." Taking Wormtail's crest, Sirius placed it next to Lupin's. Prong's crest came next and then followed by the last piece of Vulpus.

Now the crest was fully formed. It was a large crest shaped in a circle. Where the head began and the tail ended, could not be distinguished. On the rim were all the nicknames. Then came the letters. In the very center was the group of six animals. The dog was in the middle, blinking. Forming where North, South, East and West was, was Moony, Vulpus, Prongs and Wormtail, all in that respective order. The gigantic snake was coiled on the outside, the rim of the crest and was constantly hissing.

Sirius turned to his godson.

"You are that man. You will call upon the others."

"But they're dead."

"No matter" he paused, leaning closer to the other. "In whatever universe they may be in, beyond time, beyond words, beyond life we will all gather here. On the day the crest was made, we swore that when the time comes, when we are called, when we feel the essence of the VPMWPV, we will gather."

Thomas gently touched the crest, suddenly hopping that it would truly work.

"I, Thomas Jerry Reapt Riddle, hereby call forth the VPMWPV. Come forth my friends, come back to me."

Cold wind blew into the room. The candlelight which was lit by fire died out. From the depths of the shadows, the two could see something coming closer. Then there was a high and cold pitch laugh which echoed and shook what Thomas thought as the whole world.


	26. Chapter 26

**Chapter 26**

"Welcome back to the gang. Wise decision old friend." A voice spoke, one that Thomas did not recognized as figures materialized before the Dark Lord and his Godfather.

"This was meant to be. I was just delaying the unavoidable. This is inevitable." came Lupin's reply to the first voice as he and 4 other people joined the two in the room. Thomas stared before him with unbelieving his eyes. The figures except Lupin were transparent, yet solid at the same time. They looked somewhere between ghosts and humans.

Thomas gazed at each one letting his eyes linger on them. Snape and Wormtail smiled warmly at him. Lupin, though exhausted, worn down and injured quite badly, also managed to give him a reassuring nod. Thomas extended his hand to pat the man's shoulder and healed him.

Looking past the werewolf, Thomas studied the two men before him. Though he knew them both by heart, he had never truly met either of them. Neither pictures nor memories could even come close to the real thing.

Both men were standing which showed that compared to Thomas, all three were less then a head apart from each other. It was funny, yet ironic to look at living reflections of both selves at once. To the outsider, all three could have been mistaken as one person.

"Tom Marvolo Riddle" Thomas took in a quick breath. "James Potter" he continued, feeling his heart race as he spoke both names.

To the left was his infamous prankster 'father'. The man looked older and more mature then all the pictures that Thomas had of him. Yet certain trademarks could still distinguish the man as who he was. The arrogant, mysterious smile which turned into a smirk, plus the gleam in his eyes couldn't be hidden behind the mature look. The messy jet-black hair, the shape of his brown eyes was identical to Harry Potter himself. The only difference was that the man was about 20 and did not have a lightening bolt scar running down his head. Instead in his right palm which he opened and closed constantly was the golden snitch.

Standing next to the man was his father or who had suddenly became his father in the last year. This man was younger then Thomas had recalled him to be. He was no longer snake like in body form. His skin wasn't white, thin and bony, nor did he have crimson slit eyes. This was not the Voldemort that Thomas had remembered. In fact this was not Voldemort at all. The man before him was young, enthusiastic, and carried a sense of ambition, which could be seen through the innocence eyes. Looking at the 20 year old, it was hard to tell that one day this man was to become the greatest Dark Lord of the century.

"You're both different." was all Thomas could say. "Younger then the others. How can that be?"

Wormtail cleared his throat before answering the question.

"Well Prongs died around this age and you can't grow older after death." James glared at the rat for mentioning that.

"As for Voldemort being this young, let's just say we have a talented seer in our group." Black continued, coughing twice to indicate that it was himself. Thomas glanced at him with a playful slightly hurt expression that he was not told.

"Hey, I saw how he ended up and figure the guy would look better this way." Black ducked as Tom flew a fist at his face but landed on his collarbone. Black shrugged off the pain, before muttering under his breath. "Shouldn't have made it so that they can actually act and do all the things normal living people can." He laughed slightly. "In fact besides the fact that they are transparent, it's like they aren't dead." This earned a reproachful glance from his fellow friends.

As the group settled down, Thomas couldn't help but look between Riddle and Potter. He wondered how the two could get along so well when from what he had heard from the others, the two were mortal enemies.

"We had a talk with Lily." James spoke up quietly as if he had read the teen's mind. All noise stop as if waiting for a reaction from the boy. Thomas remained silent.

"After I 'died'" Tom rubbed his chin as he spoke.

"It's sorted now, everything was sorted so that this would work out." James sighed. "I was naive and immature back then. I was arrogant and foolish to think that I could…" he didn't have to finish for the others understood. Thomas sighed, grateful that the problem was solved.

"You never told me you were a seer." Thomas poked his Godfather as he changed the subject, knowing that the current one they were on would soon lead to problems. Black's face lit up.

"Oh am I a seer! The best one out there."

Lupin leaned next to Thomas' ear and whispered "He isn't. It's just to buff his name. I mean, if we had a seer in our group then we wouldn't need anyone else. It would have been victory and this war wouldn't have lasted this long." Thomas chuckled, but stopped as his Godfather glared at the two of them.

"Ha! Its better then being 'Master of the Dark Creatures'" Lupin turned slightly pink. "Or Potion's Master." Snape too looked displeased. "Or the Transfiguration Master. Or strategic genius!"

Now the group didn't look pretty happy. Thomas however had a smile plastered on his face.

"Great so you guys basically had everyone skilled in one important subject." Thomas counted off his fingers. "Dark Lord, Seer, Dark Creatures, Strategic, Potions, and Transfiguration, all you were missing was Charms."

"That was Lily." Black got elbowed for mentioning it.

"However I am pleased to say that, that problem is solved." Wormtail leapt up happily. "Oh man, aren't Ravenclaws the smartest people out there!"

"Good looking too." Tom added. "Got myself a nice and decent daughter-in-law."

"So I've heard." Black added. Hearing this, Thomas' heart pounded hard. "You'll never find another one out there. You are one lucky man, my boy!"

"But…." Thomas couldn't wait to ask. "How is she? How is Cho?"

"Inpatient are we Riddle? My, my getting caught after curfew with her wouldn't be nice would it?" Snape joked in his silky voice. Thomas rolled his eyes.

"Like you'll take off house points."

Snape laughed. "Fine, you win. Why don't you ask her yourself?" Thomas' eyes lit up at that.

"Yes that is right. We brought her for she did make my plan succeed by thinking of things that even I could not imagine and that's saying something for I'm the strategic and planer of the group." Wormtail puffed his stomach up in pride as he spoke of his title.

"And rats are terrible at the job. How many times have we failed because of you Wormtail?" Tom asked accusingly, hinting a sense of displeasure which showed Thomas the father that he knew by heart.

However before Wormtail could defend himself, there was a faint gust of wind before another member joined them. She was dressed completely in black. Emerald green lining was sewed here and there at random spots. A silver skull dangled from the golden necklace that she wore proudly on her neck. Looking at her, it would have been impossible to connect her with her previous self, to the girl whom had cried many times for her lost love. Now standing here was a young lady who was betrothed to the youngest, the most charming and most powerful man to have ever step on earth. Yes, it was true, Harry James Potter now known as Thomas Jerry Reapt Riddle was not the most powerful Dark Lord, but the most powerful man to have ever existed, owning powers and having strengths that even he does not know.

"It was until I died that I truly realized how much I loved you." Cho began, trying to answer the unasked questions. "It doesn't matter who you are. I don't care if you are the devil himself, I love you and that is all that matters to me."

"It took time, I wasted a lot of time." She took in another breath. "At first I wanted your old self back, the Harry that I knew and loved. I had cursed Voldemort a trillion times" Tom glared at her but still kept a smug smile on his face. "It had all been a nightmare, a complete joke. You hurt me so bad. I thought I could change you. I thought you still cared. All the times you demonstrated that, hope grew but vanished and dimmed with each life you took." Thomas just took her hands and held her in his embrace. He didn't know what to say, but hope that somehow he could sooth her.

"But you overcame it." Thomas said dryly. Cho smiled.

"When you are dead, you have eternity to think." She suck in a breath. "and it wasn't until Lily" She felt his grip tighten. "had left after a brief chat that everything became clear to me." She glanced at Tom before continuing. "It seems like your parents had a similar problem."

"Long story." Thomas sighed.

"So you just came to them?" Thomas gestured at the group around them. "and it was perfectly fine?" He asked incredulously

"Well not exactly. Gaining Voldemort's trust and acceptance was…."

Tom coughed.

"difficult." Cho continued. "He isn't the best man nor the easiest man to get along with."

Tom glared at her, but didn't say anything as he let her continue her story.

"For a fact well he's inpatient, scary short tempered, and dangerous, someone you don't want to cross."

Black slapped Tom's back.

"She knows you inside and out!"

Tom humph his friend, and growled at Cho.

"Better pick up the story.You know me better then I do." He tapped a nearby table. "We've got better things to do like put the plan into motion."

Cho's face lit up and Thomas turned to his father with questioning eyes

"Well it really isn't much of a story." Wormtail cut in, as if he wanted them to put the plan into motion.

* * *

_"Crucio!"_ _Voldemort's voice traveled mile after mile in the underworld. This was followed immediately by screams that echoed an equivalent distance._

_"I swear I'll kill Black the next time I see him." Voldemort muttered. "How in the world did I let him talk me into this?" he muttered under his breath._

_"Wormtail!" he barked, extending a long, white finger. "Is the plan finished?" _

_The rat shook his head, receiving another unforgivable._

_"Easy Tom" a women's voice spoke soothingly against him. He stretched out his hand and stroke his wife's hair. "We have all the time we've got." Lily said as she glanced towards the other dead VPMWPV members who were trying to devise a plan which would crush Dumbledore. Wormtail, being the strategic and mastermind planer, continually got blamed._

_Voldemort_ _growled. "Where in the world was my mind when Black talked me into this brilliant plan." He cussed, sending curses at the people before him. "Tell me how in the world is dying the perfect plan?" _

_Lily smiled slightly, remembering the answer she had received the first time she had found him in the underworld._

_"Black had said…_

_'First off, Thomas will gain full control and become the greatest and most powerful man to step onto Earth. You know as well as I that his powers aren't develop yet. Secondly, I believe that this will knock some sense into Remus. He has been a bystander to all of this but he will no longer be able to. Besides, I think I can talk him into switching sides. You could see he's wavering now, I just need some time. Thirdly, when Remus does cross, we can reform the VPMWPV and bring you all plus one extra person back to the world of the living. In the meantime, you will have all the time you need to devise a plan to crush Dumbledore. I swear this will work.'_

…_and that's how you let him talk you into this, so relax Tom with Sirius around nothing can go wrong. He's been with you since the beginning, if you don't trust him then how in the world did you end up this far?"_

_Voldemort_ _sighed. He looked above towards the sky as if he could see past the underworld, and directly to where Black was. His eyes glazed as if he was already far away from them, leaving only his physical form in the underworld._

_"What do you think you are doing here?" a sharp mumble voice caught the Dark Lord's attention. His gaze switched over to Snape who was bent over at the doorway. "Have you any idea where exactly and who exactly now dwells here?" The Potions Master talked quickly, but the Dark Lord caught it all._

_"Move Severus" Voldemort commanded. He could feel Snape pale as the man moved away, though he could not see the man's face. Voldemort's eyes turned into slits as he studied the teen before him._

_"Ah Miss Chang how nice of you to join us…now?"_ _Voldemort's voice was tinted with loath and hate. Though he did not show it, he was surprised that the girl would still show her face in front of him._

_Cho didn't seem to have heard the man, for she walked forward and slowly made her way towards the 4 VPMWPV members who were crowded around the table. Annoyed, Voldemort sent a curse at her. However Lily reached out and swayed his arm causing the curse to miss. _

_"Observe" She leaned closer to him. "She was suppose to have married Thomas. There must be a reason for her to show up here, especially alone, after all, this isn't the most pleasant place to be."_

_Bending over, Cho studied what was laid out on the table. After a long time, she used her wand and made a few changes. Though Voldemort could not see what she had done, he suddenly felt a sense of happiness fill him. _

_"Goodbye Dumbledore." She whispered softly. Wormtail was obviously pleased, for he jumped up and began to talk excitedly. The others were looking at her with a sense of admiration. Snape lowered his head and smiled as if to say that she had earned her rank among them._

_Voldemort_ _listened, obviously surprised and pleased at what Cho had done. Wormtail had finally finished and was deeply showing his admiration towards the Ravenclaw. _

_Cho walked closer to Voldemort. He could feel the uneasiness around her. _

_"You have no idea what you have gotten yourself into.You could die here and now." He spoke to her, though now he didn't sound as angry at her as he had been before. _

_Cho smiled shyly. _

_"I already have" she said simply, cutting the man in half. "This was meant to be…father." The last word had come out barley auditable, but it pleased him nevertheless. He laughed hard, and when it finally died down he said. _

_"He would be pleased."

* * *

_

"So what is it that Cho knows that you couldn't figure Wormtail?"

The Rat turned slightly pink as he tried to find ways to explain himself. Thomas shook his head, annoyed that Wormtail didn't get to the point.

"The Plan!" The teen's voice boomed, catching everyone's attention.

With a little bit contributed by everyone, and some slight finalizations, the plan became full proof.

"So who would like to go and send the invitation?"

"I'll go." Lupin said. "Anyone else goes and they'll be dead before you know it."

"Very true." Thomas spoke. "They do not realize you switched yet."

"Actually they do if Dumbledore was able to decipher that it was a werewolf who mauled Miss Jones."

Snape raised an eyebrow. "Then it is quite likely he knows. Miss Jones may not have been swiftest, but she is on the Quidditch team. Albus will investigate. He will be able to distinguish the signs of a werewolf attack. It will only be a matter of time for him to connect it to the werewolf that had done it."

"Yes very true. But it still has to be me who goes. We can't spoil our secret by having a dead person go nor will Thomas risk going just to deliver a message. As for Sirius, it just wouldn't seem to make sense to send him now when in the past he has been prone to being captured and the fact that Thomas would want his godfather close after the death of his father."

"Then I should be sending a Death Eater. It makes little sense to afford any mistakes now that we are so close to victory." Thomas murmured.

"Prongs can come with me." Lupin spoke up suddenly.

"But you just said that we shouldn't let the enemies know that 4 dead people are alive." Prongs interrupted.

"No, you can pretend to be Harry."

"but, I'm not transparent am I?" Harry interjected as he turned back to his other self.

"no but it'll make sense to them why you wouldn't actually go to the castle. It'll be too dangerous."

"That doesn't mean that it is less dangerous for you." Harry shot back.

"Harry." Lupin said wearily. "If you have a better suggestion then do suggest it otherwise Prongs and I should leave right now."

"Fine. Sirius, give Remus the ring I gave you for safe keeping."

Sirius did as he was told. He handed the ring that Thomas had given his father as a birthday present.

"Wear it Remus. No matter what happens don't take it off. In case anything unexpected occurs this may very well save your life."

Remus took the ring and carefully placed it on his index finger.

"Yes that should work. In the meantime the others can get the plan started." Tom added.

"Yes I'll go to the dungeons." Black said.

"Good and I'll stay and get the Death Eaters prepare for battle." Harry added.

"Perfect." Tom muttered, nodding, as the group disperses to do their own job.

* * *

Black made a racket as he made his way into the dungeons. Flinging the door open he entered the corridor full of empty cells.

"My Godson's bored." He began. "So we—Thoms, Remus and I…"

Horrified gasps and sharp intake of breath was followed at the mention of Remus.

"Yes Remus John Lupin," Black received shocked faces. "Devised a gamein which you all will be in it" he snarled to the remaining Weasleys. Molly burst out crying and Arthur trembled. Ron being the only one in his cell was cuddled in a corner.

"The rule is simple." Black continued. He waved his wand and the three found themselves in identical Death Eater suits. They tried to take them off but found that impossible.

"It won't come off until the game is over." Black snarled. "which brings us back to the rules."

Without warning, he hurled a series of curses at the group.

"By all means stay alive." Black turned around to leave. "By the way, you'll be facing real Death Eaters. If you win, I will consider setting you free, however if you lose, you all will have to pay the ultimate price."

Turning on his heal, he left the group with a final piece of advice.

"Sometimes your closes friends are your worst enemies while you may find that solitude among enemies. Have fun."

* * *

His footsteps rose and fell with each step that he took. Gliding behind him was Prongs. Both men were completely cloaked. Softening his footfalls, he made his way past the lake and towards the main entrance of the remaining stronghold for the Light.

There was a faint tapping followed by many footsteps. They did not have to reach the castle before the two were met with former friends.

"Declare yourselves and your business" McGonagall spoke as she greeted the new comers. She had her wand out ready to attack.

"Deliver this to Albus Dumbledore." He held out a letter. Seeing that it was not being taken, he levitated it over to her. McGonagall took the flying parchment and looked down upon it, analyzing the envelop, and found only the seal to be in peculiar. She had never seemed anything like it before, the words, the animals, the initials. The letters VPMWPV glistened in the sunlight.

"Who exactly are you?" She asked menacingly. Prongs glided forward, but Lupin put out a hand to stop him.

"Do as I say Minerva or you will receive the fatal consequences." Prongs soften his voice to sound younger. "You don't want to mess with a man who has just killed his father."

"Riddle." Was all the deputy headmistress could say.

"We await your presence" Having said that, he disappeared with a pop. Lupin got ready to leave, but then turned around to face her.

"Little Hangleton isn't the way it used to be. The Riddle House isn't a house, but a manor. Don't be surprised if you end up joining the Graveyard." Lupin paused. "Be prepared for anything. The past alone may end up killing you.

"Tell Dumbledore that there is no turning back. We have chosen our path, he has chosen his. Mark my words The Reign of Darkness is inevitable. He will fall and I will be there to witness his destruction."

This must have angered the headmistress for she threw a killing curse at him. Lupin's body froze. Then slowly he turned his hood so that his face was revealed. By the looks of it, the killing curse had no effect on the man.

"I'm protected more then you can imagine. I'm stronger now then ever before. My powers match that of Sirius himself which enables me, to share the Dark Lord's second hand position with certain members."

"Remus…." Dumbledore's voice came from behind as he now arrived at the scene. "There is no way you could change so quickly. I would welcome…."

Remus raised an eyebrow.

"Oh so you haven't received my present? Are Hogwarts owls that unreliable?"

"I did." Dumbledore said solemnly. "Though I have come to consider that Miss Jones have been the result of pressure and the mistakes of an old man. Her death is more my fault then yours. I shouldn't have accused you of what was obviously not true."

"You drove me away." Lupin spat out. Reaching out his hands, he showed them.

"I regret it deeply. I am to be blamed. Please Remus, I need you here with me, not against me."

"I'm a werewolf and werewolves are Dark and deadly creatures." As he said this, his hands turned, and transformed into claws. "I'm a monster that doesn't deserve sympathy from you or any others." he drawled. "I'm a deadly killing machine. You get that? You understand! You can never understand me! I was bitten since childhood. I lived a live of decimation, lived a life in fear that anyone would find out…"

"There is no need to." Dumbledore raised his voice.

"Indeed there is no need to. No longer am I tied to the binds of the wolf. The wolf and I are one, there is no longer a need to hide it."

"I have taken you in since childhood. I have raised and protected you from the outside…."

"Did not! All you did was isolate me! All you did was protect the public! Every minute I was close to you, another hundred found out what I was!"

Lupin's temper grew, and they could tell. Not only were his fist changing, but so was his outer appearance and this was in broad daylight.

"Minerva get me another wolfsbane. Remus is clearly in no good condition. " Minerva stayed behind.

"Is he…will you…"

"Just go."

Reluctantly, McGonagall left.

Lupin eyed the headmaster as he tried to calm down.

"You were never there for me when I needed you the most. You were fulfilling your selfish desires." Lupin took a step back as he crouched over. "and now I don't need you."

Dumbledore took a step forward but stopped as Lupin transformed. The wolf howled continually, backing up from the headmaster as though he was wounded.

Then from the forbidden forest came a man. From the distance Dumbledore could tell that it was Thomas although he was sure that it wasn't. The boy looked strangely familiar but he couldn't remember who.

The wolf bounded up to the person. Dumbledore watched from a distance deciding that it was best if he did not interfere. Defeated, he let them leave.

After a long time he walked to the place where the teen had been standing. He could few the winds changing, and a sudden coldness was left where the newcomer was before. All around, the place look dead, all life was taken away from it.

Soon, the returning Professor joined him. She gave him a questioning, skeptical look. Dumbledore did not say anything. Instead he took the letter from McGonagall and opened it, finding that it was empty.

"He invited us to the Riddle House." McGonagall spoke.

The headmaster raised an eyebrow.

"Then we shall not keep our host waiting."


	27. The Riddle house

**Chapter 27 The Riddle House**

Cold sharp wind pierced their skin as they stood under a tall haunting mansion which had cast a looming shadow over them. The surrounding area was quite unrecognizable. It was dark, gloomy and covered in wild grass.

Taking a deep breath, he addressed the dozen who had bravely, voluntarily come with him. The others, another five hundred or so, were required to do so. In simpler words the men, woman and children that were here now were all those capable of fighting.

"It is time." Dumbledore boomed, not caring that their host would hear him. "This is it. This is the final battle for our survival. We will fight together." His eyes swept through the numerous people going from the Order then to the Slytherin students, to those of Durmstrang and to all those who came from scattered places of the earth.

"We must unite as one. Put aside our differences to accomplish a similar goal." Rising his voice he continued. "This is a battle between goodness and evil, between Light and Dark. This is a battle for freedom, justice and equality."

"We will fight not for ourselves but for all. We will fight for our parents, our brothers and sisters, our children." There were a few scattered nods. "For the future generation, for mankind!"

Dumbledore gestured at the group. "You are the best of the best. One of you can stand up to ten of them! It doesn't matter if we are outnumbered!" There was an uproar cheer. Then he gestured at the Riddle Manor.

"Behind me now stands the corrupted world of Darkness. There is no light. However we shall bring back the light, bring back the warmth, bring back the world which once was tainted neither by Light or Dark." There was another uproar of approval.

"Tonight we shall write history! Tonight Harry shall crumble. Tomorrow at sunrise there will be no Darkness. Then we shall return and celebrate our glorious victory!"

* * *

Thomas paced around the Death Eaters who were lined up military style with their chins up while standing in rest position. Pausing here and there, he snapped out at individuals. Going around once until he was satisfied, he addressed the group as a whole.

"My Death Eaters." He began. "The final battle has approached." There was silence. "Dumbledore and his puny army are standing outside at this very moment waiting to take me down." There were a couple of laughs and jeers which caused them to receive the Cruciatius Curse.

"You will take this seriously. Albus Dumbledore is not a simple man in fact he is quite complex." Thomas sneered. "There will be no mistakes, no failures."

"yes master" Rang out in unison.

"Our victory is vital. We cannot afford the loss of this battle."

A figure stepped up.

"We have basically taken over the entire world. It's just a small rebellion. Please Master allow me some of the Death Eaters and I'll bring Dumbledore's head back!"

"Crucio!" Thomas spoke lazily, emitting the curse slightly more powerful then his usual ones. "Avery" The teen hissed out. "This war will not be won by one man's glory, especially not yours."

Turning back to the group, he continued.

"I will not fall for the trap that Dumbledore seems to have successfully started." He glared at Avery who was confused at why Thomas would grow angry at this offer when usually he would be pleased.

"This is exactly what the cockpit wants to happen." Thomas drawled. "Internal rebellions." There were a few heads that shook at thought of rebellion. "Let me make this clear. This is not a one man's battle." He let that line linger. "The sole glory does not belong to me or any of you. It is glory for us all, A victory for the Dark side and will not be claimed by one man but by all."

A unanimous cheer followed this.

"Which means it matters to me not who kills Dumbledore and his followers. Do you understand this? I will not have internal conflicts arouse for individuals who wish to take the sole opportunity. We will not fight each other, only the enemy. The Plan shall be taken out precisely with accurate precision. There are no exceptions. Remember punishment is severe." Thomas said dangerously leaving no room for excuses.

After a while he continued. "Success is ours. Tonight we shall defeat Albus Dumbledore. Together we shall create a new era. The Reign of Darkness shall begin at..." He studied his watch which read 9PM "midnight, precisely in 4 hours."

After saying that he started pacing around the group again.

"Go, the enemy is waiting."

As a group they rushed out the nearest exist since like Hogwarts, for protection, apparation was impossible.

Thomas watched the group leave with a smug smile on his face. Satisfied at his own speech, he took a side door to meet up with his father.

/Father/ Thomas said, addressing his father who now stood on the other side of the empty hallway. Though there was no one around, it was safer to take an extra precaution so he spoke in Parasltongue.

/It's done, it's ready. The Death Eaters have gone to fight./

Tom didn't speak for a while.

/Good. The others are adding the final touches. We shall see their progress./

* * *

Dumbledore's speech ended with applause which could be heard miles away. However this was cut short as a sudden rumble erupted from the pit of the mansion. There was a great roar of "ATTACK!!!" which rivaled the applause. Before the group knew it, Death Eater after Death Eater poured out of the mansion.

If the Light had any morale, it was squash. However these were brave people. Even at a loss, they stood their ground, gritted their teeth, and fought defiantly against evil.

Spell after spell was used, some deadlier then others. Yet no matter what was cast, the two groups seemed to be even.

Weaving in and out, Dumbledore made his way towards the open doors of the manor, killing all that was within his path, including some of whom were on his own side. He seemed to be in a trance, unaware of what was happening. All that occupied his mind now was one teen, the teen that had once been his favorite pupil, the teen that had turned against him. The teen that killed his own father. The teen who was now the Dark Lord. The teen whom he could not find anywhere on the battlefield.

However if Dumbledore had been more aware, he would have noticed that certain people, including him were given an open path. It was only until the magnificent, gigantic doors snapped behind him that he came out of the trance.

He found himself in a classroom. It was white, and filled with light. There was nothing but a door on the opposite end. Not willing to waste more time, he headed straight for the other end.

"Wait Professor." Dumbledore spun around, and found that he was not alone in the room. There were several others, bloody, cut, bruised, and obviously tired.

"When did…how did you guys get here?" He spoke to Hermione, who was held up by Krum.

"about 10 minutes ago." Fred spoke up.

"Were the first to get here." George finished.

Dumbledore sucked in a breath relived to find that McGongall and Moody were also in the group along with Karkaroff, Draco, the Pavati twins, Lavender and surprisingly, Neville. No one looked to be in too bad of a condition.

"What exactly do you mean Ms. Granger?" Albus asked, giving Krum a look of disapproval.

"It's too simple. There's got to be something to stop us besides the Death Eaters." She seemed to think a bit. "This is too easy. I mean He….he….Harry…." She didn't have to finish, for Dumbledore continued.

"Yes Harry." He stroked his beard. "His power in unimaginable. His intelligence is that of a genius. He's got Black and Lupin as his backbone. Yes you are right, we cannot take this lightly."

Clap, clap, clap sounded from the other side of the room. There standing at the open doorway was Lupin.

"Quite agreeable, quite agreeable." The man said, stepping into full view but did not step closer to the other group. "However, praising won't save any of you." He sneered.

Dumbledore pointed his wand at the man as he took a step closer. Lupin raised an index finger and shook it side to the side.

"Don't you dare take a step closer." Lupin opened his arms as he continued. "Look around you. You are not where you ought to be."

Then he raised his hands. With a sudden rumble, the room transformed. The roof disappeared and replaced by the sky. The floor changed into knee deep grass. Thunder, Lightning and Rain erupted, pouring down the now pitched black room. Instantly, 'Lumos' was shouted. If they were shocked, they could not show it as they were rooted in their spots.

The once plain room was now surrounded by a maze. It was completely surrounded by a twenty-foot-high hedge. In front of the group was the entrance, a one person gap. Beyond that was dark and creepy.

"No…no…no…." Krum was the first to recoil at the massive structure. Hermione took a look at him, and was surprised to find him sheer white with his knuckles bucking loudly.

"Vicktor?"

"Her—my-nee stay away from dat."

"Vicktor."

He didn't seemed to hear her.

"The third task." was all that escaped his voice.

"Yes quite correct Krum" Lupin could be heard but not seen. "Tri-Wizard Tounement Third Task." There was a momentary silence. "It wasn't pleasant was it? No it isn't. It's a living nightmare--Werewolves, Vampires, Giants, Snakes, Boggerts, with all imaginable Dark Creatures" There was a laugh. "Here you can meet my true friends." Another pause. "Oh yes there are spells and charms of all sorts equipped by The Charms Master."

Dumbledore seemed to have recovered for he spoke up again.

"So Potter."

"It's Riddle. The traitor's name won't be kept."

"All the same. So he's a coward hiding in there."

"In there? You mean the Maze?" Lupin seemed surprised. "No, oh no this is a process of elimination. Only the best of the best will past and perhaps meet the Dark Lord. Anyone else is unworthy of his mighty presence."

Then faintly, there was a Pop followed shortly by another one.

"Oh yes do keep this in mind. The past can hurt you or save you. Remember, this is our world, anything is possible. However, sometimes things aren't what they appear to be even if that is what it presently seems to be"

At this Dumbledore's eyes widened, as if he suddenly understood something. He took a glance at Krum and found that he was correct.

"The Dark Lord awaits his Victors." There was a sudden gasp of wind, and all the Lumos spells were deactivated.

"Lets keep this in the Dark shall we?" Not waiting for an answer Lupin disappeared again with the sound of a pop.

"Damn it the spell won't work anymore." Moody grumble. "Useless wand."

"Albus what shall we do?"

Dumbledore took in the area now lit only by lightening.

"We proceed."

"but…"

"In groups of two or three and it will stay like that until we reach the other end." The headmaster seemed to scan the walls. "Till we find the exit. We will not let this stop us."

"Vicktor" Dumbledore addressed suddenly.

"Yes Professor?"

"What exactly was in there, the last time?"

Krum looked uneasy.

"You don't want to know. Everything that was mentioned plus much more." Krum shivered as he recalled the last time he was in the maze. The headmaster looked skeptical.

"Alright I do not know what lies ahead of us. I do know we cannot pull back now. Keep this is mind. The past can never be changed. It can haunt you but cannot harm you. No matter what lies within, it has happened before. Just remember you survived the first time, there is no reason that you cannot survive a mere memory of it."


	28. Trapped in an Illusionary Past

**Chapter 28 Trapped in an illusionary past**

Dumebledore paused at the entrance of the maze, making sure that everyone else had entered safely. Taking a final look at the outside of the maze, he walked in.

The surroundings immediately changed. It was still dark, and pitched black, however he was no longer in his previous location. Then slowly, light entered and everything became focused.

He was standing in a dimly lit place. Pillar after pillar rose toward the ceiling.

There were two cloaked people. They were busily immersed in what laid between them. Neither of them seemed to notice the entrance of the headmaster. Dumbledore strode closer and hovered over them, still there was no response. Sighing, he glanced down at the yellowing papers which they were staring at. His body froze at what he saw.

There, right before him in the center was the Marauder's Map. According to that they were within the Chamber of Secrets. However, this was not the sheet that attracted his attention. The one next to it was a detail description of James Potter's death warrant.

"Voldemort when shall this be carried out?" A third year Sirius asked an equally young Tom. "Lily would never approve."

"Lily needs not to know. She's my girl. That Potter must be dispose of."

Black remained silent.

"But that is not what is bothering you is it Sirius?"

"Hmm, its nothing, I'll carry it out. No one would ever suspect that his best friend killed him."

Tom nodded and then burst out laughing.

Dumbledore stood awed, as he realized he was witnessing the past. He knew that Potter and Riddle's feud went back a long time, but he never knew that at the age of 13 Black was capable of professional murder which included planning and taking out the order. This only proved to him how dangerous the now present Dark Lord was, especially when the teen is backed by complete Darkness. Dumbledore knew perfectly well that all Voldemort had was power and Black possessed everything else.

Black had corrupted an orphan, a half born into becoming the Dark Lord. The only reason that the headmaster could think that Black didn't become the Dark Lord himself was because he knew he did not have enough power. He was strong, but not quite. So why not from the very begining manipulate another to become the Dark Lord and work in the the shadows where he'll have complete power as the manipulator.

* * *

Krum found himself lost within the maze. So far he had not been attacked or blocked by any spells or creatures. However he had the oldest feeling that he was being followed and watched closely.

"Come out damn it! Come out!" The 20 year old hissed into Darkness. "POTTER! The past cannot kill me!"

A fireball was thrown straight at him. Flattening himself on the floor, it missed him by a fraction of an inch. Then something swished over his head. Once it left, he jolted back onto his feet to take a better look at what it was. His senses trembled as he remember the last time he had faced a normal sized Chinese Fireball and had barely made it out alive. This time the Dragon was enlarged so that Krum's vision was completely taken over by just the head of the dragon. He cursed but raised his wand all the same to fight the beast.

* * *

Dumbledore watched as memories became recent enough so that his version was still fresh in his mind. He watched sadly, carefully, wondering now how he could have missed all the evidence that could have sent Black to Azkaban or even received the Kiss as early as the age of 16.

Frustrated, at being pointed out all his mistakes, the headmaster muttered a simple "Stop" To his surprise, everything disappeared and the memories were gone.

"Feeling helpless?" A real live Sirius whispered, stepping towards the headmaster. Dumbledore, out of habit threw curses at the man. Black only held up his hand to show the ring he had gotten back from Remus. "I'm protected."

"You must hate me. You must have cursed me." Black whispered. "Must have loathed me to bone." Dumbledore didn't need to reply as his anger could be seen through his eyes. Then the anger disappeared and was replaced by a sense of weariness.

"Why?"

Black studied the headmaster, taken aback by the question.

"Why do you wish to cause havoc and destruction to a world that never did anything to you? Why would you take the innocence, pureness away from men and replace it with greed and the huger for power?"

"Why?" Black snapped, his temper rising. "You have no idea how much I suffered under the wrath of my mother. I was kicked out and erased from existence on my family tapestry! Umbridge and the Dursleys portrayed only specks of her personality."

As if to demonstrate this, Black took out his wand, stuck it in his head and pulled out a long silvery strand. Enlarging it, he allowed the headmaster to view his childhood, which rival the horrors within the maze itself.

* * *

Krum panted hard. He had defeated the Chinese fireball with an extremely high price. He was left to nothing, and was desperately clinging onto life. His body slumped onto the floor and he breathed heavily as he tried to suck in oxygen. He didn't know how long he stayed there but it felt like eternity when another being approached him.

"Here, I got you boy." Krum bleakly saw the hand and tried to place the awfully familiar voice.

"Headmaster?"

Karkaroff nodded, picking up the boy by his shoulder.

Krum screamed out at the pain caused by his dislocated shoulder. "

You disobeyed Master's orders." Krum's eyes widened at that as he was picked up off the ground. "and that is your punishment." Karkaroff pulled the boy close to his body, then force his favorite pupils gaze to fall upon his own.

"That Mudblood has corrupted you." He breathed down upon the young man. "and you will die unless you kill her."

Karkaroff did not finish for he felt something pierce his body. Then a soft Avada Kedava escaped the 20 year old. Karkaroff managed a 'why', before his body fell backwards and into the grass.

"because I love her and I'll give up everything for her. The Dark Lord would understand."

* * *

Dumbledore felt the world crashing down upon him. He couldn't imagine how this man before him had survived. It only proved to the headmaster that this man was a genius, a mastermind that should never have been crossed. Add a drop of hatred to a potentially deadly killer and the solution would be the next Dark Lord.

"I had to survive and endure the cruelty of the world at the age of three. At the age of eleven, I met Riddle and Potter, and I knew then and there that if I invested in these two people, I would one day be able to inflict the damages done to me back at the world." Black paused. "In time, Potter showed incapability so I knew that I had to get rid of him. The feud between James, Lily and Tom only covered my true intentions."

Black gave an insane laugh.

* * *

She was cornered by a young Death Eater. The person did not say anything except curses. From the looks of it, the Death Eater was inexperienced. Still, even so she found herself losing.

"Her…Hermy-nee…" She could see a figure pause behind the Death Eater. Then there was a quick flash of green light. The Death Eater fell silently onto his back.

"Her-my-nee"

"Vicktor?"

Krum hurried over to her. She stared at him shocked at his outer appearance. With a quick spell, she healed both their physical health. Taking his hand for comfort, she approached and took off the hood covering the Death Eater's face.

Hermione stared unbelievingly at the Death Eater that had moments before tried to kill her. She let her tears flow freely as she stared at the blank look of her red-head boyfriend. Unable to take it anymore, she turned and buried her head on her savior's shoulder.

"How, how, could he? Why? Why?"

Krum didn't reply, as he stared at Ron with a look of utmost disgust.

After settling down a bit, Krum related his own tale to her. However Hermione didn't seem to be listening. So instead the two walked on in silence.

Nearly half an hour later, the two found themselves in the center of the maze. There lit up by lightening was a trophy. Hermione was about to reach for it when a familiar clunking sound drew closer.

"Don't touch it Hermy-nee. Most likely a Portkey."

"Exactly. If you know what's best for you then stay away from him" a deep growl came, as Moody limped into view, his wooden legs causing a loud racket.

"Professor" Hermione acknowledge, however stopped as a second Mad-Eye appeared from the opposite direction.

"Granger out of the way, that guy is a fake!" The approaching Mad-Eye warned

Hermione and Vicktor looked between the identical men. The Moody standing next to them pulled out his wand and threw curses at the other one.

"Forget it! You don't give up, do you? Charms and Potions can never turn you into me."

Heeding to the first Moody's advice, they back away not because the other was a fake, they had no way of knowing it, but because they were in the crossfire.

Krum tugged Hermione's sleeve.

"Come on lets go first. I'm sure the real one would catch up. Mad-Eye isn't that likely to fall." Hermione didn't move. Her eyes gave a gleam and whispered something into Krum's ear. He too brightened up. Each conjured a cup of water, and headed towards one of the Mad-Eyes.

Krum approached one. This Moody gave him a skeptical look. "I only drink out of my own flask. You know that." The man said firmly.

"Trust me." Krum added. However, no matter what he did, the man would not drink it.

Hermione had taken her cup to the other Moody. She helped him sit and handed him the cup.

"Drink it." She spoke softly. The man kept staring at her with his one eye. They didn't say anything.

Finally, Mad-Eye said. "I trust you Hermione." Having said that, he drank the contents in the cup. Hermione waited for a while. Nothing happened. The enchanted water which should have revealed the imposter, did not take into effect. Slowly she pointed her wand at the man before her. Mad-Eye didn't blink once, but gave her a hard deep look as she muttered an incoherent curse. Moody instantly felt better as the pain began to leave his body.

"Wait here." Was all Hermione said.

Turning she ran to the other Mad-Eye which still would not drink the water. "Vicktor the other's an imposter. He drank the water." Krum eyed her in a funny way. "Here Professor, I've got you." Hermione took the imposter and held him in a standing position. "Vicktor, you won't mind finishing the job would you?" She nodded her head at the real Moody.

"Gladly." he replied, cracking his knuckles. "and you won't mind bringing the body somewhere else now would you? We won't want that imposter confusing anyone else."

Krum made his way toward the real Moody. He bent down and offered him his hand though he made sure his back covered the imposters view.

"Work with me. Play dead." he paused. "Tell me what to do." He muttered softly. Alastor stared at him with a non-trusting eye. Finally the man muttered.

"Look around carefully." Krum glance around. "Note that there are many entrances to the center of the maze. I want you to take the exit to the left, behind us…" Saying that the man crouched over, and played his part.

The imposter watched from a distance, noting that Krum covered his view of the other Moody. Then slowly Krum stood up and he caught a glimpse of the dead man. Hermione too noticed this and she began to worry that Krum had actually taken out what she had not meant.

Krum made his way out of the left exit. He walked a while before Moody stirred and moved. He let go of him and the two stared at each other for a long time.

"I need to go back and make sure Hermione is alright." Krum finally said. Alastor did not reply so he turned to leave.

"Enter from the entrance directly behind the imposter. I'm going back."

Krum watched the man go further into the maze away from the center. He watched him until the man disappeared around the corner.

Vicktor closed his eyes and pictured the center of the maze. His eyes ran through the exits/entrances. He tried to imagine where the real Moody would enter. By the path he took, it would be the one which would instantly catch the imposter's attention. He wondered why he would want to do that. Still he knew better then to question the man.

Krum stared at the scene from the shadows. The real Moody approached the imposter with a smile plaster onto his face.

"You nearly killed me Granger." Hermione looked uneasy. "But I knew better then to trust Krum, a pawn working for Thomas."

Anger boiled in Krum. He had just saved that man's life and now he was talking like that about him.

"and now Hermione kill the imposter or are you part of this all along? Part of the whole plan in 'Let see who can kill Alastor Moody."

Mad-Eye reached out and tried to roughly grab the imposter's wand hand. However the imposter slipped away from him. Hermione was swung off balance and her wand taken away from her. The imposter stood before the two holding his own and the newly acquired wand directly at both of them.

"Krum is worthless. He killed Karkaroff. If he was here, you might have a chance of killing me. However you will never see your imposter's face Alastor."

"Avada Kedavra" Mad-Eye took a hold of Hermione's hand. He knew it was the end and wondered why he set Krum free in the first place. He believed that that man was a coward and would jump between sides.

So, he was slightly surprised when the imposter fell flat onto him. He pushed him away, before noting a smug 20 year old staring at him wand out stretched.

"Hey, I saved your gut twice, you should say something like...hmm… 'thank you'." Krum approached. Alastor shrugged.

"You're late. However you're alright kid, you're alright." Moody patted the other's shoulder.

Hermione however wasn't paying attention. She was staring at the Trophy which was emitting a strange light.

"So you all survived round two, the first of eight who may pass. Come, I am waiting." Thomas's voice came from the trophy.

The maze around them changed once more and they found themselves within the same white room.

"Illusions to be trap in your own mind, trap in an illusionary past." Alastor muttered. It was true. They could clearly see each member that had entered the room, flinging curses at nothing. There were so many of them that they were horrified to admit that they were killing each other off without knowing it. Each spell that was cast ended up hitting another person.

"Hey Professor Dumbledore isn't here." Hermione spoke up.

"No he isn't. He's got a very complex mind and these mind games haven't affected him. He broke out quite easily." Thomas' voice surrounded the room, though they could not see him. There were three soft sighs. "So instead he's making up the lost time between him and my godfather." If Thomas had thought this was more reassuring, it wasn't. The last time Dumbledore and Black fought, they were merely equivalent in power.

"In the meantime proceed to the next room and in time I will greet you personally."

* * *

"So now you may ask why in the world am I sharing this with you? What is the point?" Black waived off the memories. Dumbledore nodded silently.

"To drag along time, to waste time, to keep your attention somewhere else while your men battle it out."

Dumbledore's eyes widen.

"You easily overcame the mind games." Black turned to leave. "Perhaps this is for the best. You'll need all the rest you can get when you do meet my godson."

An open door appeared before Black.

"Sirius I...I should have been there for you. However its not too late for redemption."

"I'm past redemption. I gladly await death." Black chuckled suddenly. "Albus thank youu for letting me share this with you."

Dumbledore inclined his head.

"However I will never forgive you."

"Sirius, please..."

"Oh yes one more thing." With a quick movement, Black spun around and cast a spell, surprising the headmaster. "Oblivate."


	29. Checkmate

**Chapter 29 Checkmate**

Moody, Hermione and Krum found themselves in a room lit only enough to see anything that stood 3 feet away.

"What do we do now?" Hermione asked.

"We wait." A voice said, following closely by footsteps. Moody being as paranoid as always, began throwing curses at the approaching figure.

"Easy Alastor, you might end up killing me."

"Albus" Mad-Eye muttered acknowledging the man, The headmaster nodded.

"I see you three have passed." His eyes swept to Krum. "Mr. Krum would you accept my apology for always suspecting you?" Krum shrugged as if it didn't matter.

Slowly, more and more people appeared. The Weasley twins showed up with a grim face. Hermione couldn't bring herself to tell them about Ron, but she knew that they had the right to know.

"Fred, George" she spoke unsure of how to put it into words. "Umm Ron, he's….he's…" Krum put a hand on her shoulder. "In the maze I didn't know. I'm sorry."

Krum spoke up. "He's a Death Eater. He nearly killed Hermione so I killed him. It isn't her fault"

The twins didn't look as though they had heard him.A long time past in silence until George spoke up.

"We killed them…"

"Didn't know until they died…"

"We thought they were Death Eaters too…."

"It was only an act of self defense…"

"We didn't know we'll end up killing…"

"Mum and dad…."

Complete silence. No one really knew what to say about the sudden deaths of the Weasleys. They wanted to reassure the twins, but no one knew the right words to say. Finally another pair of footsteps broke the silence.

McGonagall came slowly into view. She was cursing under her breath.

"Potters and Riddles do not mixed." She continued. "And all the people in between are hazardous to life."

Dumbledore glanced at her sternly.

"I swear if I get out of this alive then I quit. I'm not going to be a Professor again."

Dumbledore coughed. "Minerva, really…"

To their surprise, the Deputy Headmistress blew up in front of them.

"You teach them then Albus. I'll gladly trade places with you! That damn VPMWPV group. If they weren't dead already, I swear I'll rip their necks open!"

Moody bent down over the teens to explain.

"This group were a problem. Even as children they were worst then the twins. Imagine the Marauder's plus two and with Voldemort as their leader and Black working in the background, you could imagine just how friendly and safe Hogwarts was back then."

The twins shot their Professor an innocent look.

"Pranksters, Dark Lord, murderers, if I knew back then what I know now, I swear I would have killed them off."

"Minerva, that is enough. It is obvious that you are suffering from an unpleasant past that unfortunately occurred t Hogwarts" Dlumbledore began only to be interrupted.

Lights suddenly lit the place up. The room wasn't entirely lit up, but enough for everyone to see clearly. However, there were still parts that were surrounded in darkness.

"Oh please Professor, we weren't that bad." Their attention was drawn to the opposite side of the room.

"Oh no, I wouldn't say we were, won't you agree Thomas?"

"Hey, how am I suppose to know? I wasn't there back then was I?"

They could clearly see the three who had spoken chuckle, but it sounded like eight people had done so.

Thomas was standing in the center of the room. Black was standing about a person space from the left side of his Godson, while Lupin was the same position, on the right side.

Minerva nearly blew up at being taunted like that. Dumbledore placed a hand on her shoulder and held her back. He looked directly at Thomas, but for some reason the eye contact didn't make the teen crumble.

"What are you waiting for Riddle? Let's finish this off."

Thomas' lips curled into a smile.

"Patience. Haven't you learned by now, not to run blindly into a brick wall?"

"I don't see the need to wait. You are just preventing the inevitable. You are outnumbered. You know you will lose."

"Wrong again." Thomas drawled. "If I recall at some time you, Dumbledore, had compared this war to a game of chess with me and you as the ruler." Thomas snapped his finger and more light shone through. "And I couldn't agree more." A pause. "Look below you."

Heads slowly looked down which was quickly followed by a few gasps. They found themselves in the middle of a cemetery.

"Chess board." Hermione muttered, seeing that each of them were standing on a black or white box.

The vertical outer rim was marked 'A' thought 'H' with A beginning on the Black side, and H ending on the White side. Going across, horizontally, from left to right was marked 1- 8.

Something flashed through Hermione's mind. "Wizardry chess."

"Precisely. Same rules, same idea. Defeat the king to win."

Dumbledore's eyes hardened as he realize that it was human chess, that they were the pieces.

"However Hermione" Thomas glanced at her. "remember, unlike the game we played side by side in our first year, Ron is dead and I'm the new threat. And this time, I will have no mercy. A fallen piece equals a dead person, regardless of the side he is playing on."

When Thomas seemed to have finished, Dumbledore spoke up. "I will not play in an unfair game of chess."

"Chess has never been fair."

"You misunderstand me Riddle. I have every intention to humor you and if you wish for a battle in chess, then I shall give you one. You are missing five people, call forth five and we shall proceed"

Thomas smiled. "No, I'm not the one missing a playe, .it is you."

Dumbledore glanced at his group and counted seven. They were indeed missing a chess player.

"Make that eight." Hurried footsteps and the last person stepped into the empty spot.

"Longbottom." Thomas sneered, sounding surprised. "Surprise, surprise, you defeated Malfoy and pass the elimination process. I should congratulate you.Your parents would have been proud."

Neville gritted his teeth. "I will avenge them."

"We shall see."

"Now that we are all here, let us proceed…" Black muttered.

"Back into time." Lupin continued smirking, noting the dreadful stares that he received.

"Back to our time when we were coping quite peacefully."

"You mean wrecking Hogwarts…" Lupin corrected sharply.

"Anyhow" Black prentended to sound hurt by his friends comments. "Thomas would you do the pleasure?"

Thomas nodded, before turning back to Dumbledore.

"May I humbly present the VPMWPV" As he said this, coldness passed into the room. "And I assure you, they are alive and in good condition."

"The leader of the group, previous Dark Lord and my father, Voldemort." Carnival lights went around the room, before, staying on Riddle who had the same smile plastered on his face before he 'died'. Tom was standing between Thomas and Lupin.

"Then Padfoot, the mastermind and seer, Sirius Black, my Godfather." Black only nodded. "Next comes Moony, Remus Lupin, specialist of Dark Creatures and Defense of the Dark Arts." Lupin didn't say anything nor did he move.

"There was Wormtail, the strategic planmaker and the one whom anger was thrown at even if it wasn't his fault."

"Hardly Thomas, hardly" Wormtail spoke, appearing on the far right corner.

"Lastly there was cunning, sly fox who hoped side to side, grand Potion Master he was, Serveus Snape."

Snape appeared, standing at the far left corner. Neville immediately paled further seeing that he was standing directly opposite of his ex-potion professor.

There was hushed silence as the adults anticipated who the last was to appear. The adults somehow knew who it was going to be but didn't want to admit it.

"He's playing with us." Moody said finally. "James would never….." He didn't have to finish as the distinctive Potter voice spoke up.

"But I have and I gladly enjoy being on the other end." James Potter stepped out of the shadows, his right hand playing with a snitch, while he used his left to sweep his hair back, revealing that he was scar less. "Prankster and transfiguration Master according to McGonagall."

Thomas glanced at his could-have-been-father who was simply enjoying this a bit too much. Dumbledore strained his eyes.

"Seven, still missing one."

"Yes, she's the irreplaceable one, the lucky girl who is my wife and charms Master, Cho Chang." Thomas took his hand and from behind him came his wife, dressed in traditional Ravenclaw robes.

"There are no rules except those within Wizard chess standards."

A couple of nods.

"However there are exceptions but you will have to learn that the hard way." Thomas made a gesture, slightly nodding to Dumbledore. "White moves first." As he said this, transfigured pawns appeared in the front roll.

Dumbledore looked down both left and right, and opposite of him, studying the setup. King was himself and Thomas. Queen was Cho and McGonagall. Hermione matched Black as Left Bishop. Lupin and Moody as Right Knight. Tom and Fred as Right Bishop. Wormtail and Neville as Right Rook. Snape and Krum as Left Rook. Finally with James and George facing each other off as Left Knight.

Two hours later

Clap, clap, clap Thomas applauded.

"So now the last pawn has fallen, neither side has protection now and you appear to be quite surrounded."

Dumbledore stared grimly. He had already lost Fred, and Hermione, Neville however the Dark had only suffered the lost of pawns. He needed to rethink his plans for what Thomas said was true.

Standing, and squinting, he restudied the layout.

Thomas was standing on A-3. One block away from him was his wife, Cho, on A-5. Black stood on B-1. Snape was on E-1. Wormail stood C-8. A block diagonally from him was Lupin D-7. Guarding G-7 was Tom. Lastly on E-5 was James. Everyone, besides Thomas, Cho and James had taken their Animagus form.

The remaining four pieces excluding himself could be considered scattered and helpless. The only useful piece was McGonagall, standing shakily on B-7 however, even so, it seemed that he had lost. If he had only been able to put her there a move sooner, it might have made a difference. He himself was standing on D-4, wand outstretched, ready for battle. George was a block away at C-3. Moody was standing at F-2, glaring at Snape, the traitor. Surprising, his last piece had not moved a spot and that was perhaps, he almost ruined the game by trying to heroically save Hermione, or maybe simply because Dumbledore still didn't trust him. Krum stood glumly at H-1.

"It's your move Albus" Thomas muttered softly. "Though I do not see where you could go For the last time I shall offer all of you the chance to surrender and the chance for me to spare your lives."

Dumbledore gritted his teeth, refusing to surrender.

"Minerva C-8." McGonagall was about to step forward, when Thomas spoke up.

"You won't be able to kill the Rat and I suggest you not waste time on him."

Dumbledore raised his eyebrow. "and why not?"

"First Lupin would stop you and I assure you two against one is not a good deal."

"not possible" The headmaster interjected. "In Wizard Chess like Muggle Chess, you can't help your comrades, if you do you automatically lose."

Thomas burst out laughing. "This isn't just Wizard or Mudblood Chess." He snarled when he was done. "Remember this is my world, I create the rules and if I say its possible, then it is possible."

Minerva didn't know what to do. She didn't want to risk it. Dumbledore studied the board hard. Then something flickered in his mind and fear and dread passed him.

"Vicktor move to H-3" Without questioning the headmaster, he moved.

A smiled appeared on Thomas' face.

"So you finally seen it. Still you are a move too late." Thomas gestured at his comrades. "It appears that I have won. You were careless Dumbledore and it seems to me, you aren't the chess master."

"Prongs F-3." James transformed into a Stag and leapt to his new spot.

"Checkmate."


	30. Reign of Darkness

**Chapter 30 The Reign of Darkness**

"Game over Dumbledore, I win." Many gasps came from the remaining players. They were helpless. They couldn't help the headmaster now. Thomas waived his hand and the chessboard disappeared though the cemetery remained. He took a step towards his right and took his Animagus form.

Showing his poisonous fangs and opening his deadly eyes, the snake slithered towards the headmaster. The remaining Light members wanted to help but they were blocked by the other animals.

Albus Dumbledore watched Thomas charge at him. For the first time in his life, he felt fear, and dread, which was reflected by his wand hand which was shaking. Though he knew the snake came at top speed, it felt like eternity before it reached him. Glancing from side to side, he watched painfully as the remaining Order members and students fought for their lives. One by one they fell before him, giving him a painful pleading look before life escaped them.

At last, Dumbledore was the only remaining enemy of the VPMWPV still standing within the room. Thomas had stopped before him, circling in ovals, weaving in an out of his older guardians, who now created a never-ending circle.

The headmaster stared from one former pupil to the next starting from Voldemort, and then moving clockwise to end with Prongs, whom his gaze held the longest. He flicked his gaze back to Padfoot. The Grim didn't blink, holding his position, ready to pounce if the order was given.

Raising his wand, for the last time, he screamed the Avada Kedava curse at Black. The curse had gone half way when Thomas finally bit him. Black jumped lightly and avoided the curse.

Thomas held his fangs on Dumbledore's wand hand, biting deeper and deeper. The headmaster's wand dropped, and he slumped to the floor. Staring painfully, he reverted his eyes back at Prongs.

"Why? Why? You….you….were the Heir of Gryffindor….and in my heart you remain so…… James….please forgive me…." The pain started to overwhelm the headmaster. Prongs changed to his human form. James' eyes were closed. "I…I….please….please…."

"You are the last Heir of Gryffindor for I will never be, even if it ruins in my blood." James spoke softly. "You let the chance slip away a long time ago."

"Made a mistake…mistakes were made." Dumbledore said painfully. "I….I…I…made a mistake…."

"Pleading won't work. I will kill you."

"James…listen to me….please….."

"You turned your back on me and now I do the same…."

"James…" The headmaster continued to plead.

"Thomas I'll finish him off." Curious all the at the change, Thomas withdrew, letting James take charge.

James approached the man slowly. He pulled his wand out. "You disowned me when I was a child, gave me to the Potters…."

"It was for the better….so…..so--…."

"You will never be my Father!" Hushed silence followed. "I will never be a Dumbledore. I will never walk in your footsteps!"

"You have been tinted by evil, all of you…." The headmaster looked from one to another admitting that his last pleas would go unheard. "Consumed by darkness and greed."

"Wrong Albus." James took another step closer.

"We are all victims.Victims of this world. We were different from everyone else. We were special. Raised in a world unsuitable for us. We did not choose to be bitten, famous, genius nor did we choose to be orphans, disowned or abused. We were innocent, and helpless. The world never gave us a hand. It sat back and relaxed. From the very start, we were labeled as dangerous and hazardous to the world. This world did not understand us, let alone help us."

There were nods from the creatures.

"As time goes by, anger builds. Each of us, at some point in life swore one day to inflict the pain and sufferings back to the world. When the final straw breaks, this is the result" James gestured at them.

"This world is not made for us. It does not want us. It fears us, and our specialties. You ask us Albus, you dare ask us Why? Well I'll tell you! It's because of you and people like you! Why don't you look inside yourself? The answer is right in front of you!"

"Tom, Sirius, Remus, Peter, Severus, James, Harry, Cho I owe you all an apology." The headmaster used his left hand, ripped off a sleeve and fumbled with it, as he tried to stop the blood from leaking, and the poison from moving upwards.

"I speak on behalf of the people who have harmed you. I ask your forgiveness."

"Not accepted."

"I thought so" Dumbledore paused and sighed.

"I know my time is up. However tell me… answer…me…answer me this James. Hate generates more hate. Even if I die, there will be someone to replace me…."

"That is why we shall eliminate the Light, once and for all. We will crush all rebellions before it begins."

"There will be…" he replied with certainty.

"We will not make the mistakes that we once have. The VPMWPV has been through harsh wind, rain and sand. We've suffered from grieve, and overjoyed in happiness. We have treaded down a long path to get here. I assure we won't be crushed easily. With each obstacle we overcome, we become stronger and tighter. It is something you will never understand and that is why you have failed and have fallen."

Dumbledore watched as James conjured a clock and levitated before the headmaster. It read 11:55 pm.

"In 5 minutes, precisely at midnight, you will die." A pause. "The poison will kill you…slowly and painfully…."

That was what Albus had figured out. He hadn't screamed yet, but it felt like thousands of insects biting within him. He felt hot and cold. He knew at anytime he could burst and die. Breathing was becoming heavy and his vision was blurring.

"Though you are our enemy….you will receive a proper burial. There are not many men out there, like you. We will not ruin your pride, nor will we harm you any further….in any form."

James conjured a tombstone. Albus strained his eyes, to read it.

**Albus** **Dumbledore**

The Light Lord.

Head of the Order of the Phoenix and Life Feeders.

Headmaster of Hogwarts.

There were smaller words underneath, but the headmaster's eyes dropped and life escaped him. James waited a minute or so, before checking to make sure that he had died.

"What did you write?" Thomas spoke at last, coming closer. He bent down to look at the small writing.

Raised and protected the VPMWPV as children. Never forgiven, never forgotten.

On the very bottom, was signed with the VPMWPV crest.

"Now that that is finished. Let the Reign of Darkness begin."

* * *

This is the end of the edited and revised edition of **The Reign of Darkness**. I sincerely wish to thank everyone who has read/reviewed and stayed throughout from when it was first published till now. A huge thanks top everyone for your support. As for prequl/sequel I have started the fromer **The VPMWPV** and as for sequel it will depend on how the prequel goes. Once again thank you to everyone.


End file.
